Home: Renewable Energy News: Wednesday 04 March, 2009

Renewable Energy News

WEDNESDAY 04 MARCH, 2009 |

Solar Panel Posers Greenwashing?

Solar panel greenwashing?
Having solar panels installed makes a statement - it says the owner is concerned about the environment and doing their bit to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Or does it?

Is it sometimes primarily a fashion statement or publicity stunt? Does it really matter?

Solar panels work best in the southern hemisphere when facing a northerly direction (or facing south in the northern hemisphere) and installed at a certain angle that depends on the geographical location. The angle isn't so critical within a certain range and while having the panels facing north isn't so crucial in summer, it certainly is in winter.

There's been several high profile cases of late where owners of grid connect solar power systems have required installers to orient the systems in less than optimal roof positions for apparently no other reason than promotional purposes. Some companies have been required to install systems facing south so that they are highly visible to people passing by and for general publicity purposes. This has been done even though sufficient rooftop with a northerly aspect was available.

Some say that the positioning didn't matter as given the high profile locations, more people would be exposed to the possibilities of going solar themselves - it's not just an advertisement for the business with the system, but for the concept of small rooftop solar energy systems. Additionally, they believe any renewable energy based electricity production is better than none at all.

Within the Australian solar power industry, such installations have generated some interesting internal debate. Some solar power companies believe that as long as the client is made aware their system will generate far less than its rated capacity during winter if incorrectly placed, then it's the customer's choice.

Others have said they would flatly refuse to install a system facing south if there was north facing rooftop available and some have asserted that under no circumstances would they install a system in such a manner.

One commentator has flagged that installing systems in such a way conflicts with Australian standards set by the Australian Business Council of Sustainable Energy (BCSE), may threaten the installer's BCSE accreditation and cast a shadow not just over the panels themselves, but over the entire industry if this practice became commonplace. At this point in time however, none of the governing bodies or industry associations connected to the solar power industry has issued an official stance on the subject.

A particularly thorny issue also discussed regarding such scenarios relates to rebates. In the case of residential installations, households may be eligible for government rebates amounting to many thousands of dollars, paid for courtesy of the Australian tax payer. The question has been raised that if a system owner insists on having solar panels facing the wrong way, should they be eligible for rebates or have to forfeit them? The same vexing question has been posed in relation to Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) as the panels would not be working to their full potential for much of the year.

Aside from the industry ethics dilemma of such cases, the positioning of solar power systems is certainly one of the many potential issues that all consumers planning on buying a solar power system should be made aware of.

Eleanor: MIT's Solar Powered Car

Eleanor solar powered car
Australians will be able to grab a glimpse of MIT's newest solar powered car called Eleanor when the team participates in October's World Solar Challenge race across Australia. The Solar Electric Vehicle team will be driving the car across the USA soon in preparation for the big event.

Eleanor incorporates a carbon fibre body and six square meters of monocrystalline silicon solar cells. According to the team, Eleanor can be driven all day at a cruising speed of nearly 90 kilometres per hour - if the sun is shining. The battery bank, when fully charged, can provide enough energy to travel around 350 kilometres.

The AUD $380,000 Eleanor is higher than earlier solar powered cars developed by the team, which allows for a far more comfortable seating position for the driver. Even with the increased height and 30 percent greater frontal area of the vehicle, the new car has exactly the same wind resistance thanks to improvements in aerodynamic design from extensive wind-tunnel testing.

The new vehicle also incorporates wireless links so the support team will be able to monitor every aspect of the car's electrical performance in real time during the race.

The World Solar Challenge, which has been running in Australia since 1987, is billed as the ultimate challenge in sustainable energy and the premier forum for solar vehicle technology. Teams from all over the world race their solar powered vehicles over a 3000km journey from Darwin in the Northern Territory to Adelaide in South Australia.