Green Friendly California

Effective use of Solar Energy and the future of the Electric car

Lighting buildings via windows and skylights is the most common way we take advantage of solar energy today. Passive solar room heating, solar hot water and pool heating are other common applications of solar “thermal” energy.

We already know it is possible to harness solar energy by directly converting sunlight into storable electricity by the use of semi-conductors and solar electric power cells. The problem comes from the inefficient storage systems currently available. Electric car development has been held back by heavy batteries that limit driving range.

Effective, responsible use of solar thermal energy incorporated into electric car technology still remains one of the twenty first century’s biggest challenges. Recently Japanese and European Union officials conducted talks aimed at jointly developing advanced solar cells and rechargeable batteries for electric cars. Here is a link to the article.

Solar energy is free, and its supplies are unlimited. Using solar energy produces no air or water pollution but does have some indirect impacts on the environment. For example, manufacturing the photovoltaic cells used to convert sunlight into electricity, consumes silicon and produces some waste products.

Efficient storage systems could be deployed to meet your energy needs in the future and greatly reduce our carbon output. Any advancement in the technology must include safeguards.