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Photovoltaic Cell Productions As Renewable Energy Source Environmental Sciences Essay

UK Government and a majority of developed nation’s representatives have started paying a lot of attention towards low carbon emitting technologies. This proposal is for the production of photovoltaic cells in an economic way, to make this most abundant and clean fuel the cheapest and best option for people to use.

Why should we emit less Carbon in the atmosphere, and shall we switch to the energy resources which are less carbon emitting?

Are we aware of our environment in which we live? Do we know the danger for humanity in the upcoming centuries? Can we realize that we are responsible for the depletion of our environment? The answer is NO. People in this money making world are not aware of their environment and also they are not interested in taking care of. Increase in the number of industries across the world increases the amount of green house gases [GHG] emission.

What can GHG increase in atmosphere cause to humans?

As a result of increasing GHG in atmosphere our earth is facing a serious climatic change which had never took place before. Already a huge hole has been identified in our ozone layer because of the increasing level of toxin and GHG emissions. Global warming is now growing as a serious issue in all countries and entire world is now trying to lower the level of toxic substances in atmosphere and to reduce global warming. Because of global warming glaciers and ice caps started melting in Polar Regions. If global warming continues in the same way then our climatic condition will change drastically which will result in the depletion of human kind from earth (Weiss, et. al, 2008).

The major cause behind global warming:

Researchers have found out that most of the climatic problem which we face today is because of the emission of carbon-di-oxide. Whatever process we do, we emit carbon-di-oxide. Industries are trying to develop new technologies in order to lower the amount of carbon-di-oxide emitted into atmosphere. Apart from the increasing number of industries there is a drastic decrease in the number of trees across the world. This is another major reason for high emission of carbon-di-oxide in atmosphere. Though there are many toxic substances emitted in atmosphere, most of the problems are created only due to carbon-di-oxide. So researchers and common people are now trying to reduce the percentage of carbon emission in atmosphere.

How to reduce carbon emission?

As we are now forced to reduce the carbon emission amount, researchers and technologist are in a hunt to find out alternative approach. New methodologies are developed and provided to people. When people use those methods ultimately emission of carbon is going to be reduced. There are some power generation methods from which you can attain zero carbon emission.

Zero carbon power generation methods will use natural resources for generating power like hydro power, solar power, wind power, geothermal power and also nuclear power. (Mckinnon et. al., 2010) If we use natural gas as our energy source we can attain minimum amount of carbon emission. Even if we use natural gas method the amount of carbon emitted can be captured and stored using advanced methodologies which prevents carbon from entering into our atmosphere.

Everything is only in the hands of our people as they only can reduce the amount of carbon emitted in atmosphere. For example they should try to minimize the usage of automobiles for unnecessary situations, reduce the usage of air conditioners and refrigerators, and avoid burning of fossil fuels and plastics and many more.

Research Objectives:

If a system was created to convert solar energy into electrical, would the demand be great? Well that depends on several different factors such as affordability, savings, practicality, and availability in general. If there is a positive outlook for all those factors, then another must be considered. How should we go about replacing all the old electrical set ups in every office across the nation with the new solar set up? This could be a huge feat, but one that really should be worth while, since if these systems worked well we could be saving the earth and human kind a lot of grief regarding non renewable energy as well as pollution and of course money saving for businesses. So there are many benefits no doubt there would be a high demand for this new system so long as it is kept affordable for both large businesses as well as small businesses. So what is the most efficient way to meet this high demand in installing the new systems, which will of course entail going to the businesses themselves, once they have purchased a system, and removing the old systems and installing the new ones.

Well, before this new system is even on the market and a rush of demand flies in, those who created it and know the system best, should gather crews of people, hired workers, and train them on how the new system works, how to remove the old systems safely and how to get the new one installed and working. Then the new solar energy system can be released with a huge marketing campaign and when the phone calls start rolling in for thousands or purchases, everything will be ready and crews can start heading out right away to start putting the new systems into place. 

The creation of this machine that creates electrical energy from solar power would be a huge boost to the economy once it is actually made available. Because of the large number of people that would have to be hired and trained on installing these systems, it is a great benefit to everyone, the earth, the business and the economy which in turn helps people, which in turn helps business right back, it's all one big circle and this machine would essentially be a great stimulus for the entire nation. 

Making the purchase simple and affordable for business owners will only increase the demand, and one other aspect to consider which is a very important one is the disposal of the old systems. I believe to keep demand and practicality for the purchaser at its greatest; this should be the responsibility of the company installing the new system, eliminating any and all hassle for the business owner, making the system all the more appealing. What should be done with the old systems will be up to the government and then carried out by the creator and installing companies for the new system, whether they find a way to destroy it or it gets put in storage somewhere or what ever gets decided as best for the planet and the people. All this would create simplicity for the removal of old and replacing it with the new.

The objectives of my research, in a nutshell, are as follows:

To study the existing market of solar power generation and utilization

To look at the possibilities of photovoltaic cells production for small units

Finding the economically viable solution for small businesses

Literature Review

Global warming is the hot topic across the globe. Scientists and researchers are trying to find out some ways to reduce the amount of carbon-di-oxide being emitted into our atmosphere. Already earth has witnessed the results of carbon emissions in the form of depletion of ozone layer and melting of glaciers and ice caps in the Polar Regions. If this condition prevails and global warming tends to increase for the upcoming years then there is a great threat to the next generation human kind.

From the report of ESTIF (2007) it is clear that if this condition prevails for next century then obviously our entire human kind will come to an end. Is there any way to reduce the green house effect? Is there any way to reduce or even to avoid the emission of carbon into our atmosphere? Yes. There are many other natural energy resources using which you can even prevent the emission of carbon into our atmosphere. Natural energy resources are available in the form of water, air, wind, solar and nuclear. Among the forms of energy mentioned above, it is solar energy, which we get more abundant than other sources of energy.

Weiss et.al (2008) mentions that it is only through heat energy we are doing most of our day to day activities. Using solar powered generators you can easily produce the necessary amount of electricity that can run some electrical appliances in your home. Solar power panels can be easily installed in your homes from which you can easily generate and store power that can be used for any electrical purpose. Solar power panels are now popular across the world and most government is now trying to trap the maximum amount of solar power they obtain. We know that almost half the solar power is radiated from earth’s surface, which when trapped can be effectively used for power generation purposes. If solar power generation techniques are implemented successfully, we can easily reduce the emission of carbon to a greater extent.

Mckinnon et. al. (2010) have discussed the market size only in UK for solar energy utilizing devices. The data from 2009 tells us that companies and public corporations make up 58.2% of the UK enterprises, 24.4% are sole proprietors and lastly non-profits make up 3.9% and partnerships 13.5%. This information is quite significant as we know that many companies and proprietorships and simply small businesses. The technical sector of the economy (including scientific and professional) makes up 15 percent of enterprises in the UK and it is a sector that would surely use new technology such as that of a solar electric generator. Another sector that is very note worthy is the constructions sector which makes up 13.4 percent of enterprises, as businesses in this sector would most certainly use new technology, as they are in the business of building, so why not build with the latest technology.

When looking at the sizes of companies it is very note worthy that 88.7% of UK businesses have less than 10 employed, which usually means it is a small company, and 98% have less than 50 and only 0.4% has an employment of over 250. This clearly shows how many small businesses there are in the UK and if 88.7-98% of businesses in the UK switched to new non-carbon non-heat emitting technology for electricity, there would no doubt be a huge positive effect on the environment. It is true that even though very large companies make up only a small number of the businesses in the UK they still produced hundred of times more emissions than the small companies combined, as it is mentioned earlier, that large companies would be sure to invest in such technology as it would be very important for them public relations wise. If a large company chose NOT to go 'green' while other large companies did, consumers would definitely head to the 'green' competition. So with the large businesses pretty well forced to submit to the new technology, is it worth making it attainable and making the investment, for the 98% smaller companies, well yes, strength in numbers right? With the sheer number of small businesses in the UK there would be an undoubted impact if they all went with the new technology, as through their numbers small companies have a large impact.


The basic methodology I will follow during this research will be to collect information through reliable secondary sources. The organizations like Systems Phonetics, ECOSOL, and Solar Century which are from the same industry and are located in or around London will be studied. Initially, I will base my research on secondary data. If however the published sources prove to be less then required, I will collect primary data through questionnaire methods. For my research, I will study secondary data about the three above mentioned firms. After data collection, it will be classified, and analysis will be done. The analysis might need the use of some statistical tools which will be used as per requirement. Interpretations will be made on the basis of this analysis.

The actual system I propose here will be a combination of already existing electricity wires systems in the buildings, and photoelectric cells capable of generating enough electricity to run small sized offices. The photoelectric cells system would not only be linked to the existing electrical wiring system that the same wiring could be used to generate and use electricity generated through solar energy; but it would also be linked with the UPS and batteries acting as storage places. Solar energy is a huge resource, but we need to be ready for a situation when sun is behind the clouds. To avoid any unforeseen situation, it is advised to run the offices through electricity generated via photovoltaic cells along with the storage batteries. The wiring will remain the same and this saves cost for infrastructure.

Proposed Innovation set up and energy savings through it:

The set up actually consists of a set of photovoltaic cells collected together in the form of a machine which has the capability of converting solar power into electricity. The machine should be plugged in to the already existing power supply wiring system. This way, the energy generated will be used directly like the other sources of power generation. The energy generated via solar cells will be less carbon emitting and thus more environments friendly. Also, if such a machine becomes operational, it will be highly cost effective in the long run.

Our revolutionary new machine that can convert solar energy into electrical energy, and it worked, that would be phenomenal. The savings would be great. Huge cost reduction in the use of electrical energy, and this energy source would be much less taxing on the earth thanks to no more carbon emissions, it's a renewable source that we are not going to run out of and the earth would be healthier and more useful for future generations. There is no doubt that the benefits to creating such a machine and huge, for the earth, for people and for business. Large businesses would be all over it right from the start, as although the initial investment is there to have old systems replaced with the new solar energy converting systems, the benefit would immediately out weight the initial investment, not only in savings, but in public relations as well. However, there is a far greater number of small businesses than large businesses, how can these small businesses be convinced that the new system is beneficial, and once they are convinced how can it be made practical to replace so many old systems with the new one?

Project Team

The Team will consist of a project manager who will be responsible for planning and managing the implementation of this process, the making of this machine and supervision of getting this system installed. An engineer will be on the team to see the probability of things that could be done and to find alternate ways in case some of the proposed tasks are difficult to do. Then, we will also need a technician to fix the photovoltaic cells as a machine. Once this solar energy generating machine is ready, the technician will be responsible for keeping the wires in working conditions so that the small firms find it easy and economical to use this system.

Project Tasks

To carry on this research, I will study about the existing market situation and about the already explored possibilities of using solar energy as the main energy resource in our everyday life. Once the machine is conceived, the tasks will be simple.

First task to be done is to plan the whole process. It will take a year to finish the installation and test running of this machine. This is the project manager’s job. It will take 1 month.

After the tasks are planned and it comes to the execution, the engineer will be in charge. This person is responsible for getting the right sized photovoltaic cells and advice the technician to put them together and fix the wires to make a machine, which can generate electricity through solar energy. This will take 6-8 months.

The next task is to fix the wiring. This will be the technician’s job. The wires should be connected to the wiring system of the building to supply uninterrupted power. The power generated by these photovoltaic cells should be saved as well, for use in times when there is no sun. For that, we will need batteries to be charged. This will take another month.

Maintenance will be a regular task. This will also be the technician’s job. This will be an ongoing job.

Project Cost

The manager will be paid £25,000 for the project. The engineer, whose working days will be 30 in this project, will be paid £12000. Technician will be on duty every day, and all day, and the payment for technician would be £36500. If the building needs more than one technician, the task would be divided between them so the overall cost will not be affected. £25000 is needed for the purchase of photovoltaic cells and for the supporting wiring.

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