Solar_Energy

Solar Energy Energy, which in physics terms is defined as the capacity to make things move, is widely used in residences, a variety of industries and technology fields and it plays a pivotal role in people’s daily lives. Most of the energy we use now comes from coal, oil and natural gas, which are being consumed more rapidly than they are being replaced. That means one day we could use up these fuels. Thus, to discover and develop new resources is extremely important. There is a kind of energy that can be replenished in a short period of time called renewable energy, which comes from sources that frequently being recycled and usually less polluting than energy from fossil fuels. There are five main kinds of renewable energy: biomass, hydropower, geothermal, wind and solar, among which the solar energy，or energy that is provide by sunlight and heat, has been utilized least yet. However, solar energy holds a number of benefits for societies and it has already proven to have positive effects on residential homes and industrial applications. For many years, solar energy has been the economic choice for use in many industries where power is required at remote locations without government subsidy, as the vast majority of systems used require few kilowatts of power. Also, solar energy is frequently used on transportation signaling. For example, offshore navigation buoys, lighthouses, and increasingly, road traffic warning signals are using solar power due to its power saving efficiency. Solar power’s great benefit here is that it is highly reliable and requires little maintenance so it is ideal to use in places that are hard to access. Following are some details of the major advantages of solar energy. Primarily, as we mentioned above, solar power is particularly useful in remote areas where it is lack of regular electricity supply. For instance, at Singleton, New South Wales, Australia, there are 2.75 hectare solar farm whose size is approximately as large as 5 football fields. It is the largest of its scale in the southern hemisphere and produces enough electricity (400 kW) each year to power about 100 homes. Moreover, by this way tonnes of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulphur dioxide or mercury that come from many traditional fuels have been kept from releasing into the atmosphere, and it greatly contributes to the decrease of harmful green house gas emissions. Accordingly, it is extremely environmentally friendly. In addition, solar energy systems are free of charge substantially on conservation and will last for a relatively long period. Once installed, there are no recurring costs. They do not require you to add any fuel. Also, more solar panels can easily be set up in the future with your family's needs growth. Fortunately, a good news reported on “Energy Matters” in 18 MAY, 2009 said that Australia government had plan a world's largest solar farm project cost $1.365 billion for Australia. The Rudd government stated it remains committed to ensuring 20 per cent of Australia's electricity comes from renewable sources by 2020. To sum up, solar energy has been aware of gradually by its significant superiorities on both economic and environmental issues. It may be merely a matter of time before solar power becomes a major energy and benefits our society as a whole. Reference list http://www.solarbuzz.com/applications.htm http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/alternate/page/renew_energy_consump/figure1.html http://www.mrsolarenergy.com/index2.php'option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=31 http://ezinearticles.com/'Solar-Energy-Advantages-Disadvantages&id=50178 http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php'main_page=news_article&article_id=442