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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Fachliteratur
- Sprache: Englisch
PHYSICS OF SOLAR ENERGY AND ENERGY STORAGE Join the fight for a renewable world with this indispensable introduction Solar energy is one of the most essential tools in the fight to create a sustainable future. A wholly renewable and cost-effective energy source capable of providing domestic, business, and industrial energy, solar energy is expected to become a $223 billion a year industry by 2026. The future of global energy production demands researchers and engineers who understand the physics of harnessing, storing, and distributing solar energy. Physics of Solar Energy and Energy Storage begins to meet this demand, with a thorough, accessible overview of the required fundamentals. Now fully updated to reflect the past decade of research amidst a growing understanding of the scale of our collective challenge, it promises to train the next generation of researchers and engineers who will join this vital effort. Readers of the second edition of Physics of Solar Energy and Energy Storage will find: * A particular focus on lithium-ion rechargeable batteries * Detailed discussions of photovoltaic solar systems, concentrating solar systems, passive solar heating, and more * Homework problems and exercises throughout to reinforce learning Physics of Solar Energy and Energy Storage is ideal for mechanical, chemical, or electrical engineers working on solar or alternative energy projects, as well as researchers and policymakers in related fields.
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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024
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Table of Contents
Cover
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
List of Figures
List of Tables
Preface to the Second Edition
Preface to the First Edition
Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1 Shaping a More Livable World
1.2 Solar Energy
1.3 Solar Photovoltaics
1.4 A Rechargeable Battery Primer
1.5 Other Renewable Energy Resources
Problems
Chapter 2: Nature of Solar Radiation
2.1 Light as Electromagnetic Waves
2.2 Interface Phenomena
2.3 Blackbody Radiation
2.4 Photoelectric Effect and Concept of Photons
2.5 Einstein's Derivation of Blackbody Formula
Problems
Chapter 3: Origin of Solar Energy
3.1 Basic Parameters of the Sun
3.2 Kelvin–Helmholtz Time Scale
3.3 Energy Source of the Sun
Problems
Chapter 4: Tracking Sunlight
4.1 Rotation of Earth: Latitude and Longitude
4.2 Celestial Sphere
4.3 Treatment in Solar Time
4.4 Treatment in Standard Time
Problems
Chapter 5: Interaction of Sunlight with Earth
5.1 Interaction of Radiation with Matter
5.2 Interaction of Sunlight with Atmosphere
5.3 Penetration of Solar Energy into Earth
Problems
Chapter 6: Thermodynamics of Solar Energy
6.1 Definitions
6.2 First Law of Thermodynamics
6.3 Second Law of Thermodynamics
6.4 Thermodynamic Functions
6.5 Ideal Gas
6.6 Ground Source Heat Pump and Air Conditioning
Problems
Chapter 7: A Quantum Mechanics Primer
7.1 The Static Schrödinger Equation
7.2 Many‐Electron Systems
7.3 The Chemical Bond
7.4 The Solid State
7.5 The Dynamic Schrödinger Equation
Problems
Notes
Chapter 8: ‐Junctions
8.1 Semiconductors
8.2 Formation of a ‐Junction
8.3 Analysis of ‐Junctions
8.4 Light‐Emitting Diodes for Illumination
Problems
Chapter 9: Semiconductor Solar Cells
9.1 Basic Concepts
9.2 The Shockley–Queisser Limit
9.3 Nonradiative Recombination Processes
9.4 Antireflection Coatings
9.5 Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells
9.6 Thin‐Film Solar Cells
9.7 Tandem Solar Cells
Problems
Note
Chapter 10: Solar Photochemistry
10.1 Physics of Photosynthesis
10.2 Artificial Photosynthesis
10.3 Genetically Engineered Algae
10.4 Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells
10.5 Bilayer Organic Solar Cells
Problems
Chapter 11: Solar Thermal Energy
11.1 Early Solar Thermal Applications
11.2 Solar Heat Collectors
11.3 Solar Water Heaters
11.4 Solar Thermal Power Systems
Problems
Chapter 12: Physical Energy Storage
12.1 Pumped Hydro Storage
12.2 Sensible Heat Energy Storage
12.3 Phase Transition Thermal Storage
Problems
Chapter 13: Rechargeable Batteries
13.1 An Electrochemistry Primer
13.2 Lithium‐Ion Batteries
13.3 Sodium‐Ion Batteries
13.4 Traditional Rechargeable Batteries
Problems
Chapter 14: Building with Sunshine
14.1 Early Solar Architecture
14.2 Building Materials
14.3 Example of Holistic Design
Problems
Appendix A: Energy Unit Conversion
Appendix B: Spherical Trigonometry
B.1 Spherical Triangle
B.2 Cosine Formula
B.3 Sine Formula
B.4 Formula C
Problems
Appendix C: Vector Analysis and Determinants
C.1 Vector Analysis
C.2 Determinants
Problems
Appendix D: Real Spherical Harmonics
D.1 The Spherical Coordinate System
D.2 Spherical Harmonics
Appendix E: Complex Numbers
E.1 Definition of Complex Numbers
E.2 The Euler Formula
Appendix F: Statistics of Particles
F.1 Maxwell–Boltzmann Statistics
F.2 Fermi–Dirac Statistics
F.3 Bose–Einstein Statistics
Appendix G: Measurement in Quantum Mechanics
G.1 The Measurement Postulate
G.2 Experiments in Position Detection
G.3 Tomographic Imaging of Wavefunctions
G.4 Einstein's Opinion on Quantum Mechanics
G.5 A Modern View of Schrödinger's Cat
G.6 A Natural Presentation of Quantum Mechanics
Bibliography
Index
End User License Agreement
List of Tables
Chapter 1
Table 1.1: Inventions in energy conversion
Table 1.2: Consumption of fossil fuels, in EJ
Table 1.3: Production cost of solar PV electricity
Table 1.4: Proved resources of various fossil fuels
Table 1.5: Regional hydroelectric power potential and output
Table 1.6: Basic data of bioenergy
Table 1.7: Yield of biofuel from different crop
Chapter 2
Table 2.1: Quantities in Maxwell's equations
Table 2.2: Dielectric constants and refractive indices
Table 2.3: Skin depths of several metals in nanometers
Table 2.4: Absorptivity of several metals in %
Table 2.5: Blackbody radiation at different temperatures
Table 2.6: Stopping voltage for photocurrent
Chapter 3
Table 3.1: Chemical composition of the Sun
Chapter 4
Table 4.1: Notations in positional astronomy
Table 4.2: Average daily solar radiation on various surfaces
Table 4.3: The 24 solar terms
Table 4.4: Cardinal points in years 2024 through 2030, in GMT
Chapter 5
Table 5.1: Thermal property of earth
Chapter 6
Table 6.1: Ground source heat pumps in selected countries
Chapter 7
Table 7.1: Wavefunctions of the harmonic oscillator
Table 7.2: Wavefunctions of the hydrogen atom in Bohr radius a
Table 7.3: Nomenclature of atomic states
Chapter 9
Table 9.1: Properties of common solar‐cell materials.
Chapter 10
Table 10.1: Power density of photosynthesis
Chapter 11
Table 11.1: Selective absorbing surfaces
Table 11.2: Typical parameters of flat‐plate solar heat collectors
Chapter 12
Table 12.1: Thermal properties of commonly used materials
Table 12.2: Thermal properties of solid materials
Table 12.3: Commonly used phase‐change materials
Chapter 13
Table 13.1: Standard potentials at 25C
Table 13.2: Comparison of rechargeable batteriess
Table 13.3: Intercalation voltage of electrode materials
Table 13.4: Properties of organic solvents for Li‐ion batteries
Table 13.5: Cylindrical lithium ion batteries
Table 13.6: Prismatic lithium‐ion batteries
Chapter 14
Table 14.1: Specific thermal resistance
Table 14.2: Typical ‐values of wall insulation materials
Appendix A
Table A.1 Energy and power units
Appendix D
Table D.1 Spherical harmonics
List of Illustrations
Chapter 1
Figure 1.1 Energy consumption by sectors. The energy consumption in the Unit...
Figure 1.2 History of fossil‐fuels consumption In the 18th and 19th ce...
Figure 1.3 Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion. On April 20, 2010, the Deepw...
Figure 1.4 Volume and percentage of coal‐generated electricity. Curren...
Figure 1.5 Phasing out coal electricity in the United States. In the United ...
Figure 1.6 Cost decline of installed solar PV systems. According to The Nati...
Figure 1.7 Cost of various energy resources. Levelized cost of electricity (...
Figure 1.8 Annual solar energy arriving at surface of Earth. The average sol...
Figure 1.9 World marketed energy consumption.
Source:
Statistica. The unit is...
Figure 1.10 Sources of electricity: history and forecast.
Source:
Det Norske ...
Figure 1.11 Selenium solar cell and silicon solar cell. (a) The selenium pho...
Figure 1.12 Inventors of silicon solar cells. Left to right: Gerald Pearson ...
Figure 1.13 Average price of solar panels: 1975–2021. The average pric...
Figure 1.14 Maximum power and fill factor. By connecting a load resistor to ...
Figure 1.15 Volume and types of solar cells: 2011–2021. For the three ...
Figure 1.16 Winners of the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. John B. Goodenough...
Figure 1.17 The first lithium‐ion rechargeable battery of Stanley Whittingha...
Figure 1.18 Improved Li‐ion battery cathode materials of John Goodenough....
Figure 1.19 Improved Li‐ion battery anode materials of Akira Yoshino. ...
Figure 1.20 The expansion of Li‐ion rechargeable battery market. Since...
Figure 1.21 Percentage of electricity generation from hydropower in various ...
Figure 1.22 Itaipu hydropower station at border of Brazil and Paraguay. With...
Figure 1.23 Derivation of Betz theorem of wind turbine. Wind velocity before...
Figure 1.24 Efficiency of wind turbine. See Eq. 1.23. As shown, the maximum ...
Figure 1.25 Wind turbines in Copenhagen. A photo taken by the author in Cope...
Figure 1.26 Costa Pinto Production Plant of sugar ethanol. The foreground sh...
Figure 1.27 Annual production of ethanol in...
Figure 1.28 Production process of biodiesel. By mixing triglyceride with alc...
Figure 1.29 Oil palm fruit. The size and structure of oil palm fruit are sim...
Figure 1.30 Wild oil palms in Africa. Oil palms are native trees in Africa w...
Figure 1.31 Shallow geothermal energy. Seasonal variation of underground tem...
Figure 1.32 Deep geothermal energy. The origin of deep geothermal energy is ...
Figure 1.33 Regions for deep geothermal energy extraction. At the edges of t...
Figure 1.34 Nesjavellir geothermal power station, Iceland. Due the high conc...
Figure 1.35 The Rance Tidal Power Station, France. The barrage of the Rance ...
Chapter 2
Figure 2.1 James Clerk Maxwell. Scottish physicist (1831–1879), one of the m...
Figure 2.2 Electromagnetic wave. The electric field intensity is perpendic...
Figure 2.3 Derivation of Fresnel formulas. Two media with indices of refract...
Figure 2.4 Blackbody radiation. A large cavity with a small hole is a good b...
Figure 2.5 Blackbody spectral irradiance. The blackbody spectral irradiance,...
Figure 2.6 Lenard's apparatus for studying photoelectric effect. A quar...
Figure 2.7 Louis de Broglie. French physicist (1892–1987). In his 1924 Ph.D....
Figure 2.8 Einstein's derivation of blackbody radiation formula. The ra...
Figure 2.9 Wavelengths of visible lights.
Chapter 3
Figure 3.1 Luminosity of the Sun. The average radiation power density of su...
Figure 3.2 Sir William Thomson. Irish‐born Scottish physicist (1824‐1907), ...
Figure 3.3 The Kelvin–Helmholtz model. A model of the origin of solar...
Figure 3.4 Hans Albrecht Bethe. German‐born American physicist (1906–2005) ...
Figure 3.5 Internal structure of the Sun. The core of the Sun, with a densi...
Chapter 4
Figure 4.1 The night sky. By orienting a camera toward the sky in the night...
Figure 4.2 Latitude and longitude. The zero point of latitude, the prime me...
Figure 4.3 Celestial sphere and coordinate transformation. The horizon syst...
Figure 4.4 Coordinate transformation in Cartesian coordinates. (a) Cartesia...
Figure 4.5 Obliquity and the seasons. The rotational axis and the orbital p...
Figure 4.6 Apparent motion of the Sun. Earth is rotating on its axis OP eas...
Figure 4.7 Daily solar radiation energy on a vertical surface facing south. ...
Figure 4.8 Daily solar radiation energy on a horizontal surface. In the sum...
Figure 4.9 Daily solar radiation energy on a latitude‐tilt surface. S...
Figure 4.10 Daily solar radiation energy on a surface with tracking. Daily ...
Figure 4.11 Sidereal time and solar time. Because Earth has a rotation on i...
Figure 4.12 Obliquity and equation of time. Because of obliquity, even if E...
Figure 4.13 Eccentricity of Earth's orbit: Kepler's laws. According...
Figure 4.14 Equation of time. Thick solid curve, the difference between mean...
Figure 4.15 The analemma: the apparent motion of the Sun. By fixing a camera...
Chapter 5
Figure 5.1 Absorptivity, reflectivity, and transmittivity. Part of the radia...
Figure 5.2 Emissivity and absorptivity. When heated, matter emitts radiation...
Figure 5.3 Bouguer–Lambert–Beer's law. Variation of light in...
Figure 5.4 Attenuation of sunlight at azimuth...
Figure 5.5 Interaction of sunlight with atmosphere. Approximately 30% of sol...
Figure 5.6 AM0 and AM1.5 solar radiation spectra. The AM0 spectrum is the so...
Figure 5.7 Insolation map of the worlda. Solar radiation per day on a surfac...
Figure 5.8 Derivation of the heat‐conduction equation. The rate of cha...
Figure 5.9 Penetration of solar energy into Earth. On the ground, the averag...
Chapter 6
Figure 6.1 Joule's experiment. A paddle‐wheel 1 is placed inside an ins...
Figure 6.2 Carnot cycle. The thermodynamic system is a quantity of gas confi...
Figure 6.3 Reverse Carnot cycle. An idealized representation of a refrigerat...
Figure 6.4 Carnot cycle with ideal gas as the system. Curve 1–2 is an isoth...
Figure 6.5 Ground source heat pump. The temperature in the ground about 10‐...
Figure 6.6 Ground‐source heat pump: cooling mode. The refrigerant is ...
Figure 6.7 Ground source heat pump: heating mode. The refrigerant is compre...
Figure 6.8 Heat‐exchange configurations for ground‐source heat pumps....
Figure 6.9 Vertical well in a heat pump system. Detail of the vertical well...
Chapter 7
Figure 7.1 Austrian banknote with a portrait of Schrödinger. It is a ra...
Figure 7.2 Wavefunctions in a one‐dimensional potential well. The wave...
Figure 7.3 Energy levels in a one‐dimensional potential well. The wave...
Figure 7.4 Energy levels and wavefunctions of a harmonic oscillator. The sol...
Figure 7.5 Hydrogen atom in spherical polar coordinates. The center of the c...
Figure 7.6 Wavefunction of ground‐state hydrogen atom. (a) The density...
Figure 7.7 Wavefunctions of excited‐states of hydrogen atom. Wavefunct...
Figure 7.8 Hydrogen wavefunctions. The phase, either positive or negative, i...
Figure 7.9 Schematics of Stern‐Gerlach experiment. A beam of silver at...
Figure 7.10 Hybrid...
Figure 7.11 Hybrid...
Figure 7.12 Hybrid...
Figure 7.13 Scanning tunneling microscope. With a piezoelectric drive, the t...
Figure 7.14 HOMO of pentacene imaged by STM. The HOMO of pentacene is comput...
Figure 7.15 LUMO of pentacene imaged by STM. The LUMO of pentacene ia comput...
Figure 7.16 Concept of chemical bond. When two atoms (a) and (b) approach ea...
Figure 7.17 Accuracy of the perturbation treatment of hydrogen molecular ion
Figure 7.18 Wavefunctions outside the atomic core. The bonding and antibondi...
Figure 7.19 Molecular orbitals built from two...
Figure 7.20 The...
Figure 7.21 The...
Figure 7.22 Chemical bonds of seven first‐row elements. Comparing theo...
Figure 7.23 Bloch wavefunctions. The wavefunctions in a solid is formed by l...
Figure 7.24 Reciprocal space and the first Brillouin zone. For real crystals...
Figure 7.25 Conductor, semiconductor, and insulator. (a) For conductors, the...
Figure 7.26 Direct semiconductors and indirect semiconductors. (a) For some ...
Figure 7.27 Band gaps of a number of semiconductors. In the Figure, the ener...
Figure 7.28 Formation of energy bands in crystalline silicon. The origin of ...
Figure 7.29 Condition of energy conservation. The integrand in Eq. 7.195 has...
Chapter 8
Figure 8.1 Intrinsic semiconductors: Free electrons and holes. Thermal excit...
Figure 8.2 The ‐type semiconductor. The donor atoms release electrons ...
Figure 8.3 The ‐type semiconductor. The acceptor atoms grab electrons ...
Figure 8.4 Unit cell in crystalline silicon. The crystallographic structure ...
Figure 8.5 Roles of doners and acceptors in silicon. Different types of impu...
Figure 8.6 Formation of a...
Figure 8.7 The depletion model of ...
Figure 8.8 Effect of bias in a ...
Figure 8.9 Current‐voltage behavior of a...
Figure 8.10 Evolution of the efficiency of light sources. The efficiency of ...
Figure 8.11 Nobelists for the invention of blue‐light LED. Isamu Akasa...
Figure 8.12 The relation between driving voltage and bandgap. Experimental r...
Figure 8.13 Two main methods to produce white light from LEDs. (A) Creating ...
Figure 8.14 Generating white light by blue luminescence and yellow phosphore...
Figure 8.15 Wavelength and lattice constant for In......
Figure 8.16 Blue‐light LED fabricated on a GaN substrate. Modern blue‐...
Figure 8.17 The first blue‐light LED built in 1972. After a 1973 Applied Phy...
Chapter 9
Figure 9.1 Interaction of radiation with semiconductors. According to the th...
Figure 9.2 Direct and indirect semiconductors. Depending on the relative pos...
Figure 9.3 Absorption spectra of semiconductors commonly used for solar cell...
Figure 9.4 Generating voltage and current by the electron–hole pair. (...
Figure 9.5 Equivalent circuit of solar cell. A solar cell can be represented...
Figure 9.6 Generation of an electron–hole pair. A photon of energy gre...
Figure 9.7 Ultimate efficiency of solar cells. Only photons with energy grea...
Figure 9.8 A simplified optical model of semiconductors. To evaluate the eff...
Figure 9.9 Efficiency limit of solar cells. Efficiency limit as determined b...
Figure 9.10 Efficiency limit of solar cells for AM1.5 solar radiation. Effic...
Figure 9.11 The Auger recombination process. The electron–hole pair can reco...
Figure 9.12 Two‐step recombination processes. The electron–hole pair c...
Figure 9.13 Antireflection coatings (a) At the interface of two dielectric m...
Figure 9.14 Matrix method for antireflection coatings. For each layer of ant...
Figure 9.15 Choice of materials for SLAR coatings. The minimum reflectance f...
Figure 9.16 Wavelength range of antireflection coatings. Single‐layer antire...
Figure 9.17 Typical high‐efficiency silicon solar cell. The front side...
Figure 9.18 Cross section of typical solar module. A complete solar module i...
Figure 9.19 Monocrystalline solar module and polycrystalline solar module. (...
Figure 9.20 Typical structure of CdTe thin film solar cell. The ‐junction m...
Figure 9.21 Typical structure of CIGS thin‐film solar cell. A ‐juncti...
Figure 9.22 CIGS solar cell integrated circuit. An experimental solar cell m...
Figure 9.23 Multijunction tandem solar cell. Through the TCO layer, the sunl...
Figure 9.24 Working principle of multijunction tandem solar cells. The solar...
Chapter 10
Figure 10.1 Chlorophyll. Chemical structure of the most common chlorophyll, ...
Figure 10.2 Absorption spectra of chlorophyll . (a) The absorption peaks of ...
Figure 10.3 ATP and ADP. Both molecules contain an adenine, a ribose, and tw...
Figure 10.4 NADPH and NADP...
Figure 10.5 Key steps in the Calvin cycle. The Calvin cycle has three major ...
Figure 10.6 Chloroplast. (a) Chloroplast is the site of photosynthesis in pl...
Figure 10.7 Efficiency of photosynthesis. The net efficiency of photosynthes...
Figure 10.8 Structure of dye‐sensitized solar cell. (a) The cell is bu...
Figure 10.9 The N3 ruthenium dye and photocurrent spectrum. (a) Chemical str...
Figure 10.10 Bilayer organic solar cell. (a) A cross sectional view. Solar r...
Figure 10.11 CuPc and its absorption spectrum. (a) Chemical structure of CuP...
Chapter 11
Figure 11.1 A 3000‐years‐old solar igniter. A bronze solar ignit...
Figure 11.2 Hot box of Horace de Saussure. In 1767, Horace de Saussure desig...
Figure 11.3 Adams solar oven. In 1878, W. Adams invented a solar oven in Bom...
Figure 11.4 Cast‐iron solar oven. Cast‐iron parabolic reflector suppor...
Figure 11.5 Spectral power density of solar radiation and hot bodies. (a) Th...
Figure 11.6 Reflectance curve for cermet selective‐absorbing surface. ...
Figure 11.7 Flat‐plate solar heat collector. It is essentially a de Sa...
Figure 11.8 Transmittance of window glass. The window glass is transparent f...
Figure 11.9 Evacuated‐tube solar thermal collector. It is made of two ...
Figure 11.10 Thermosiphon solar heat collector. (a) Structure of a thermosip...
Figure 11.11 High‐pressure vacuum tube collector. At the core is a sta...
Figure 11.12 Solar water heater with thermosiphon collectors. (a) Design of ...
Figure 11.13 Aerial photo of SEGS system. The axes of the parabolic mirrors ...
Figure 11.14 Solar power plant with central receiver. To achieve high power ...
Figure 11.15 Stirling engine. Invented in 1816 by Robert Stirling, the engin...
Figure 11.16 Working principle of Stirling engine. (a) The gas is cold, the ...
Figure 11.17 Focusing property of a parabola.
Figure 11.18 Kyoto box. A simple solar oven used extensively in Africa.
Chapter 12
Figure 12.1 The Nant de Drance pumped hydro storage plant. (A) is the upper ...
Figure 12.2 Water in an insulating tank. Calculation of energy storage behav...
Figure 12.3 Rock‐bed thermal energy storage system. Using a mixture of synth...
Figure 12.4 Ice Bear energy storage system. An insulated tank is filled with...
Figure 12.5 A typical domestic hot water tank.
Chapter 13
Figure 13.1 Electrochemistry of rechargeable batteries. (a) Discharging proc...
Figure 13.2 Setup for measuring standard potential. To measure the standard ...
Figure 13.3 Electrochemical processes in a Li ion cell. (a) During charging,...
Figure 13.4 Production and demand for lithium‐ion batteries. As report...
Figure 13.5 Energy density and specific energy of Li‐ion batteries. Ov...
Figure 13.6 Ball‐and‐stick model of lithium cobalt oxide. The so...
Figure 13.7 Share of different cathode materials of Li‐ion batteries in 2022...
Figure 13.8 A ball‐and‐stick model of the phosphate polyanion. T...
Figure 13.9 Lithium iron phosphate and iron phosphate. The tetrahedrons are ...
Figure 13.10 Structure of Li...
Figure 13.11 Organic solvents in Li‐ion batteries. The most widely use...
Figure 13.12 Structure of lithium hexafluorophosphate. The most frequently u...
Figure 13.13 An electron microscopy image of a separator for Li‐ion battery....
Figure 13.14 Stacking of electrodes, separators, and current collectors. The...
Figure 13.15 Cylindrical lithium‐ion battery. The battery components, ...
Figure 13.16 Prismatic lithium‐ion battery. (A) The sheets of cathodes...
Figure 13.17 Elemental abundance in the earth's crust. The two key metal...
Figure 13.18 Variation of the price of lithium carbonate. The market price o...
Figure 13.19 Number of research papers on Ni‐ion battery. Since the 19...
Figure 13.20 Sodium ion rechargeable battery. (a) During charging, Na ions a...
Figure 13.21 Ferrocyanide anion and Prussian blue. (a) An iron cation is bon...
Figure 13.22 The falling‐cards model of hard carbon. The hard carbon m...
Chapter 14
Figure 14.1 Traditional peasant house in rural northern China. (a) the front...
Figure 14.2 Effect of glazing on insulation. (a) All external walls are glaz...
Figure 14.3 Design of a solar house: First floor. All large windows are faci...
Figure 14.4 Design of a solar house: Second floor. All large windows are fac...
Figure 14.5 External view of the solar house. With the large souce‐facing wi...
Figure 14.6 Internal view of the solar house. With the large souce‐facing wi...
Figure 14.7 Calculation of eaves.
Appendix B
Figure B.1 The spherical triangle. A
great circle
is defined by the intersec...
Figure B.2 Derivation of cosine formula. The derivation is based on the proj...
Appendix D
Figure D.1 Laplace operator in spherical coordinates. In order to derive the...
Appendix G
Figure G.1 Electron in the wavefunction of hydrogen atom (a) the wavefunctio...
Figure G.2 Double‐slit experiment with single‐photon detectors A...
Figure G.3 Building‐up of the interference pattern. The screen is a tw...
Figure G.4 Creating a Wilson‐chamber track by a plane wave. (a) and (b...
Figure G.5 Tomographic image of a nitrogen molecule (a) Theoretical wavefunc...
Figure G.6 Tomographic image of carbon dioxide (a) Theoretical wavefunction ...
Figure G.7 Schrödinger's CAT scan. Using computer assisted tomograp...
Guide
Cover Page
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
List of Figures
List of Tables
Preface to the Second Edition
Preface to the First Edition
Begin Reading
Appendix A Energy Unit Conversion
Appendix B Spherical Trigonometry
Appendix C Vector Analysis and Determinants
Appendix D Real Spherical Harmonics
Appendix E Complex Numbers
Appendix F Statistics of Particles
Appendix G Measurement in Quantum Mechanics
Index
End User License Agreement
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Physics of Solar Energy and Energy Storage
Second Edition
C. Julian Chen
Columbia UniversityNew York, USA
Copyright © 2024 by John Wiley & Sons Inc. All rights reserved.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Published simultaneously in Canada.
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List of Figures
1.1 Energy consumption by sectors.
1.2 History of fossil‐fuels consumption
1.3 Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion.
1.4 Volume and percentage of coal‐generated electricity.
1.5 Phasing out coal electricity in the United States.
1.6 Cost decline of installed solar PV systems.
1.7 Cost of various energy resources.
1.8 Annual solar energy arriving at surface of Earth.
1.9 World marketed energy consumption.
1.10 Sources of electricity: history and forecast.
1.11 Selenium solar cell and silicon solar cell.
1.12 Inventors of silicon solar cells.
1.13 Average price of solar panels: 1975–2021.
1.14 Maximum power and fill factor.
1.15 Volume and types of solar cells: 2011–2021.
1.16 Winners of the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
1.17 The first lithium‐ion rechargeable battery of Stanley Whittingham.
1.18 Improved Li‐ion battery cathode materials of John Goodenough.
1.19 Improved Li‐ion battery anode materials of Akira Yoshino.
1.20 The expansion of Li‐ion rechargeable battery market.
1.21 Percentage of electricity generation from hydropower in various countries.
1.22 Itaipu hydropower station at border of Brazil and Paraguay.
1.23 Derivation of Betz theorem of wind turbine.
1.24 Efficiency of wind turbine.
1.25 Wind turbines in Copenhagen.
1.26 Costa Pinto Production Plant of sugar ethanol.
1.27 Annual production of ethanol in Brazil.
1.28 Production process of biodiesel.
1.29 Oil palm fruit.
1.30 Wild oil palms in Africa
1.31 Shallow geothermal energy.
1.32 Deep geothermal energy.
1.33 Regions for deep geothermal energy extraction.
1.34 Nesjavellir geothermal power station, Iceland.
1.35 The Rance Tidal Power Station, France.
2.1 James Clerk Maxwell.
2.2 Electromagnetic wave.
2.3 Derivation of Fresnel formulas.
2.4 Blackbody radiation.
2.5Blackbody spectral irradiance.
2.6 Lenard's apparatus for studying photoelectric effect.
2.7 Louis de Broglie.
2.8 Einstein's derivation of blackbody radiation formula.
2.9 Wavelengths of visible lights.
3.1 Luminosity of the Sun.
3.2 Sir William Thomson.
3.3 The Kelvin–Helmholtz model.
3.4 Hans Albrecht Bethe.
3.5 Internal structure of the Sun.
4.1 The night sky.
4.2 Latitude and longitude.
4.3 Celestial sphere and coordinate transformation.
4.4 Coordinate transformation in Cartesian coordinates.
4.5 Obliquity and the seasons.
4.6 Apparent motion of the Sun.
4.7 Daily solar radiation energy on a vertical surface facing south.
4.8 Daily solar radiation energy on a horizontal surface.
4.9 Daily solar radiation energy on a latitude‐tilt surface.
4.10 Daily solar radiation energy on a surface with tracking.
4.11 Sidereal time and solar time.
4.12 Obliquity and equation of time.
4.13 Eccentricity of Earth's orbit: Kepler's laws.
4.14 Equation of time.
4.15 The analemma: the apparent motion of the Sun.
5.1 Absorptivity, reflectivity, and transmittivity.
5.2 Emissivity and absorptivity.
5.3 Bouguer–Lambert–Beer's law.
5.4 Attenuation of sunlight at azimuth.
5.5 Interaction of sunlight with atmosphere.
5.6 AM0 and AM1.
5.7 Insolation map of the worlda.
5.8 Derivation of the heat‐conduction equation.
5.9 Penetration of solar energy into Earth.
6.1 Joule's experiment.
6.2 Carnot cycle.
6.3 Reverse Carnot cycle.
6.4 Carnot cycle with ideal gas as the system.
6.5 Ground source heat pump.
6.6 Ground‐source heat pump: cooling mode.
6.7Ground source heat pump: heating mode.
6.8 Heat‐exchange configurations for ground‐source heat pumps.
6.9 Vertical well in a heat pump system.
7.1 Austrian banknote with a portrait of Schrödinger.
7.2 Wavefunctions in a one‐dimensional potential well.
7.3 Energy levels in a one‐dimensional potential well.
7.4 Energy levels and wavefunctions of a harmonic oscillator.
7.5 Hydrogen atom in spherical polar coordinates.
7.6 Wavefunction of ground‐state hydrogen atom.
7.7 Wavefunctions of excited‐states of hydrogen atom.
7.8 Hydrogen wavefunctions.
7.9 Schematics of Stern‐Gerlach experiment.
7.10 Hybridwavefunctions.
7.11 Hybridwavefunctions.
7.12 Hybridwavefunctions.
7.13 Scanning tunneling microscope.
7.14 HOMO of pentacene imaged by STM.
7.15 LUMO of pentacene imaged by STM.
7.16 Concept of chemical bond.
7.17 Accuracy of the perturbation treatment of hydrogen molecular ion.
7.18 Wavefunctions outside the atomic core.
7.19 Molecular orbitals built from two‐type AOs.
7.20 Theand MOs.
7.21 TheandMOs.
7.22 Chemical bonds of seven first‐row elements.
7.23 Bloch wavefunctions.
7.24 Reciprocal space and the first Brillouin zone.
7.25 Conductor, semiconductor, and insulator.
7.26 Direct semiconductors and indirect semiconductors.
7.27 Band gaps of a number of semiconductors.
7.28 Formation of energy bands in crystalline silicon.
7.29 Condition of energy conservation.
8.1 Intrinsic semiconductors: Free electrons and holes.
8.2 The‐type semiconductor.
8.3 The ‐type semiconductor.
8.4 Unit cell in crystalline silicon.
8.5 Roles of doners and acceptors in silicon.
8.6 Formation of a ‐junction.
8.7 The depletion model of ‐junction.
8.8 Effect of bias in a ‐junction.
8.9 Current‐voltage behavior of a ‐junction.
8.10 Evolution of the efficiency of light sources.
8.11Nobelists for the invention of blue‐light LED.
8.12 The relation between driving voltage and bandgap.
8.13 Two main methods to produce white light from LEDs.
8.14 Generating white light by blue luminescence and yellow phosphorescence.
8.15 Wavelength and lattice constant for InGa N. .
8.16 Blue‐light LED fabricated on a GaN substrate.
8.17 The first blue‐light LED built in 1972.
9.1 Interaction of radiation with semiconductors.
9.2 Direct and indirect semiconductors.
9.3 Absorption spectra of semiconductors commonly used for solar cells.
9.4 Generating voltage and current by the electron–hole pair.
9.5 Equivalent circuit of solar cell.
9.6 Generation of an electron–hole pair.
9.7 Ultimate efficiency of solar cells.
9.8 A simplified optical model of semiconductors.
9.9 Efficiency limit of solar cells.
9.10 Efficiency limit of solar cells for AM1.
9.11 The Auger recombination process.
9.12 Two‐step recombination processes.
9.13 Antireflection coatings (a) At the interface of two dielectric media, the reflection coefficient is determined by the Fresnel formula.
9.14 Matrix method for antireflection coatings.
9.15 Choice of materials for SLAR coatings.
9.16 Wavelength range of antireflection coatings.
9.17 Typical high‐efficiency silicon solar cell.
9.18 Cross section of typical solar module.
9.19 Monocrystalline solar module and polycrystalline solar module.
9.20 Typical structure of CdTe thin film solar cell.
9.21 Typical structure of CIGS thin‐film solar cell.
9.22 CIGS solar cell integrated circuit.
9.23 Multijunction tandem solar cell.
9.24 Working principle of multijunction tandem solar cells.
10.1 Chlorophyll.
10.2 Absorption spectra of chlorophyll.
10.3 ATP and ADP.
10.4 NADPH and NADP.
10.5 Key steps in the Calvin cycle.
10.6 Chloroplast.
10.7 Efficiency of photosynthesis.
10.8 Structure of dye‐sensitized solar cell.
10.9 The N3 ruthenium dye and photocurrent spectrum.
10.10 Bilayer organic solar cell.
10.11 CuPc and its absorption spectrum.
11.1A 3000‐years‐old solar igniter.
11.2 Hot box of Horace de Saussure.
11.3 Adams solar oven.
11.4 Cast‐iron solar oven.
11.5 Spectral power density of solar radiation and hot bodies.
11.6 Reflectance curve for cermet selective‐absorbing surface.
11.7 Flat‐plate solar heat collector.
11.8 Transmittance of window glass.
11.9 Evacuated‐tube solar thermal collector.
11.10 Thermosiphon solar heat collector.
11.11 High‐pressure vacuum tube collector.
11.12 Solar water heater with thermosiphon collectors.
11.13 Aerial photo of SEGS system.
11.14 Solar power plant with central receiver.
11.15 Stirling engine.
11.16 Working principle of Stirling engine.
11.17 Focusing property of a parabola.
12.1 The Nant de Drance pumped hydro storage plant.
12.2 Water in an insulating tank.
12.3 Rock‐bed thermal energy storage system.
12.4 Ice Bear energy storage system.
12.5 A typical domestic hot water tank.
13.2 Setup for measuring standard potential.
13.3 Electrochemical processes in a Li ion cell.
13.4 Production and demand for lithium‐ion batteries.
13.5 Energy density and specific energy of Li‐ion batteries.
13.6 Ball‐and‐stick model of lithium cobalt oxide.
13.7 Share of different cathode materials of Li‐ion batteries in 2022.
13.8 A ball‐and‐stick model of the phosphate polyanion.
13.9 Lithium iron phosphate and iron phosphate.
13.10 Structure of Li.
13.11 Organic solvents in Li‐ion batteries.
13.12 Structure of lithium hexafluorophosphate.
13.13 An electron microscopy image of a separator for Li‐ion battery.
13.14 Stacking of electrodes, separators, and current collectors.
13.15 Cylindrical lithium‐ion battery.
13.16 Prismatic lithium‐ion battery.
13.17 Elemental abundance in the earth's crust.
13.18 Variation of the price of lithium carbonate.
13.19 Number of research papers on Ni‐ion battery.
13.20Sodium ion rechargeable battery.
13.21 Ferrocyanide anion and Prussian blue.
13.22 The falling‐cards model of hard carbon.
14.1 Traditional peasant house in rural northern China.
14.2 Effect of glazing on insulation.
14.3 Design of a solar house: First floor.
14.4 Design of a solar house: Second floor.
14.5 External view of the solar house.
14.6 Internal view of the solar house.
14.7 Calculation of eaves.
B.1 The spherical triangle.
B.2 Derivation of cosine formula.
D.1 Laplace operator in spherical coordinates.
G.1 Electron in the wavefunction of hydrogen atom (a) the wavefunction of the ground state of hydrogen atom.
G.2 Double‐slit experiment with single‐photon detectors A plane wave of wavelength falls on a screen with two slits and of distance .
G.3 Building‐up of the interference pattern.
G.4 Creating a Wilson‐chamber track by a plane wave.
G.5 Tomographic image of a nitrogen molecule (a) Theoretical wavefunction of the HOMO of a molecule from quantum mechanical computation.
G.6 Tomographic image of carbon dioxide (a) Theoretical wavefunction of the HOMO of a C molecule from quantum mechanical computation.
G.7 Schrödinger's CAT scan.
List of Tables
1.1 Inventions in energy conversion
1.2 Consumption of fossil fuels, in EJ
1.3 Production cost of solar PV electricity
1.4 Proved resources of various fossil fuels
1.5 Regional hydroelectric power potential and output
1.6 Basic data of bioenergy
1.7 Yield of biofuel from different crop
2.1 Quantities in Maxwell's equations
2.2 Dielectric constants and refractive indices
2.3 Skin depths of several metals in nanometers
2.4 Absorptivity of several metals in %
2.5 Blackbody radiation at different temperatures
2.6 Stopping voltage for photocurrent
3.1 Chemical composition of the Sun
4.1 Notations in positional astronomy
4.2 Average daily solar radiation on various surfaces
4.3 The 24 solar terms
4.4 Cardinal points in years 2024 through 2030, in GMT
5.1 Thermal property of earth
6.1 Ground source heat pumps in selected countries
7.1 Wavefunctions of the harmonic oscillator
7.2 Wavefunctions of the hydrogen atom in Bohr radius a
7.3 Nomenclature of atomic states
9.1 Properties of common solar‐cell materials.
10.1 Power density of photosynthesis
11.1 Selective absorbing surfaces
11.2 Typical parameters of flat‐plate solar heat collectors
12.1 Thermal properties of commonly used materials
12.2 Thermal properties of solid materials
12.3 Commonly used phase‐change materials
13.1Standard potentials at 25C
13.2 Comparison of rechargeable batteriess
13.3 Intercalation voltage of electrode materials
13.4 Properties of organic solvents for Li‐ion batteries
13.5 Cylindrical lithium ion batteries
13.6 Prismatic lithium‐ion batteries
14.1 Specific thermal resistance
14.2 Typical ‐values of wall insulation materials
Preface to the Second Edition
Twelve years have elapsed since the publication of the first edition of Physics of Solar Energy. During the one dozen years, dramatic changes have emerged in solar energy and related fields. A new edition is needed to reflect those advances.
First, from 2010 to 2022, the price of solar panels has dropped from $2 per watt to $0.2 per watt, a full order of magnitude. The cost reduction made solar electricity the least expensive of all energy sources in most places on the Earth. In the future, solely based on economics, solar energy will become a main source of energy.
Second, around 2010, lithium‐ion rechargeable battery was almost exclusively applied to portable electronics, such as laptop computers, cellular phones, digital cameras, hand‐held tools, etc. In 2020s, lithium‐ion battery has been massively applied to automobiles and utility‐scale energy storage. Because solar radiation is intermittent, to make solar energy the main source, energy storage is a necessity. Lithium‐ion battery is the most versatile energy storage device. Logically, the 2019 Nobel Prize for chemistry was awarded to John B. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham, and Akira Yoshino for their contributions to the development of the lithium‐ion battery. The Nobel Prize press release concluded with “It can also store significant amounts of energy from solar and wind power, making possible a fossil fuel‐free society.”
Third, around 2010, light‐emitting diodes (LED) accounted for less than 1% of the illumination market. In 2022, it grew to more than 50%. It is expected to reach almost 100% in 2025. As a reverse process of solar cells, LED is also based on a semiconductor pn‐junction. The efficiency of LED lights is more than 10 folds higher than that incandescent light, and its lifetime is more than 10 times longer. Logically, the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano and Shuji Nakamura “for the invention of efficient blue light‐emitting diodes which has enabled bright, long‐lasting, and energy‐saving white light sources”.
Last but not the least, in 2015, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held the 21st Conference of the Parties in Paris, where a legally binding international treaty on climate change was reached by 196 parties, known as the “Paris Agreement”. Accordingly, all countries or regions signed up to that treaty should propose and implement their nationally determined contributions to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in order to limit the increase of global average temperature following the goals of the Paris Agreement. The implementation of the above technological advances becomes a globally coordinated endeavor.
To reflect those advances, in the second edition of the book, several new sections are added, including Section 1.1 entitled Shaping a More Livable World, Section 1.4 entitled A Rechargeable‐Battery Primer, and Section 8.4 entitled Light‐Emitting Diodes for Illumination. Because of the importance and richness of contents, a new Chapter Rechargeable Batteries is added. Accordingly, the title of the second edition of the book is changed to Physics of Solar Energy and Energy Storage.
Besides adding new contents, in view of the recent advances in fundamental physics, the presentation is also modernized. The common theoretical basis for solar cells, LEDs, and rechargeable batteries is quantum mechanics. It is the centerpiece of modern physics. In the first edition, essential quantum mechanics was presented in Chapter 7 and Appendix C. It follows the traditional formulation based on Hilbert space, where the dynamic variables of point particles are represented by Hermitian operators. The crown jewelry of the traditional formulation, Wolfgang Pauli's 1925 algebraic solution of the hydrogen atom problem, was presented in detail because of its mathematical beauty. Nevertheless, my teaching experience showed that the traditional formulation of quantum mechanics was difficult to understand, and not useful to explain solid‐state physics and chemistry, as related to solar energy and energy storage.
The 2023 Nobel Prize in Physics elables a natural view of wavefuncions, the central concept in quantum mechanics. Using attosecond light pulses, atomic and molecular wavefunctions, also called as orbitals, were imaged experimentally in real space [43, 74]. It showed that Schrödinger's wavefunction is a physical field, the same as electromagnetic fields. Teaching quantum mechanics becomes much easier. The confusing and paradoxical concepts such as Hilbert space, von Neumann axioms, complex operators, uncertainty relations, Born statistical rule, and wave‐particle duality, are eliminated. All wavefunctions are real and they never collapse. Complex number is an optional mathematical tool for time‐dependent phenomena, same as in electromagnetics. In Chapter 7, A Quantum Mechanics Primer, a conceptually and logically consistent elementary quantum mechanics is presented at a sophomore level for all natural scientists and engineers. It is the foundation for the understanding of atomic physics, molecular physics, solid‐state physics, chemistry, molecular biology, including the interaction of radiation with atomic systems. More mathematical details of Section 7.3, The Chemical Bond, can be found in Chapter 4 of the third edition of Introduction to Scanning Tunneling Microscopy, Oxford University Press 2021, entitled Atomic Forces. In Appendix G, entitled Quantum Measurement in Light of Experiments, some basic concepts concerning the understanding of quantum mechanics are presented.
In Spring 2009, I started to teach a graduate‐level course Physics of Solar Energy at Columbia University. I sincerely thank Professors Irving Herman, Cevdet Noyan, and Richard Osgood for assistance to establish the new course. The first edition of this book was based on the lecture notes of that course. I especially thank Marina Zamalin, the Associate Dean of Online Education of the School of Engineering and Applied Science, to establish a Columbia Video Network (CVN) course. I sincerely thank Professor Marc Spiegelman for assistance to establish an updated course, Physics of Solar Energy and Energy Storage, for the Fall semester 2023 and on. For 14 consecutive years, the Physics of Solar Energy course has attended by several hundreds of students, mostly graduates. I heartily thank their valuable feedback to improve the course.
C. Julian Chen
Columbia University
in the City of New York
August 2023
Preface to the First Edition
One of the greatest challenges facing mankind in the twenty‐first century is energy. Starting with the industrial revolution in the 18th century, fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas have been the main energy resources for everything vital for human society: from steam engines to Otto and diesel engines, from electricity to heating and cooling of buildings, from cooking and hot‐water making, from lighting to various electric and electronic gadgets, as well as for most of the transportation means. However, fossil fuel resources as stored solar energy accumulated during hundreds of millions of years are being rapidly depleted by excessive exploration. In addition, the burning of fossil fuels has caused and is causing damage to the environment of Earth.
It is understandable that alternative or renewable energy resources, other than fossil fuels, have been studied and utilized. Hydropower, a derivative of solar energy, currently supplies about 2% of the world's energy consumption. The technology has matured, and the available resources are already heavily explored. Wind energy, also a derivative of solar energy, is being utilized rapidly. The resource of such highly intermittent energy is also limited. Nuclear energy is not renewable. The mineral resource of uranium is limited. The problems of accident prevention and nuclear waste management are still unresolved.
The most abundant energy resource available to human society is solar energy. At 4×106 EJ/year, it is ten thousand times the energy consumption of the world in 2007. For example, if 50% of the sunlight shining on the state of New Mexico is converted into useful energy, it can satisfy all the energy needs of the United States.
The utilization of solar energy is as old as human history. However, to date, among various types of renewable energy resources, solar energy is the least utilized. Currently, it only supplies about 0.1% of the world's energy consumption, or 0.00001% of the available solar radiation. Nevertheless, as a result of intensive research and development, the utilization of solar energy, especially solar photovoltaics, is enjoying an amazingly rapid progress. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that in the latter half of the 21st century solar energy will become the main source of energy, surpassing all fossil fuel energy resources.
Similar to other fields of technology, the first step to achieve success in solar energy utilization is to have a good understanding of its basic science. Three years ago, Columbia University launched a master's degree program in solar energy science and engineering. I was asked to give a graduate‐level course on the physics of solar energy. In the spring semester of 2009, when the first course was launched, 46 students registered. Columbia's CVN (Columbia Video Network) decided to record the lectures and distribute them to outside students. Because of the high demand, the lectures series for regular students repeated for two more semesters, and the CVN course on the physics of solar energy was repeated for seven consecutive semesters. This book is a compilation of lecture notes.
The basic design of the book is as follows. The first chapter summarizes the energy problem and compares various types of renewable energy resources, including hydropower and wind energy, with solar energy. Chapter 2, “Nature of Solar Radiation,” presents the electromagnetic wave theory of Maxwell as well as the photon theory of Einstein. Understanding of blackbody radiation is crucial to the understanding of solar radiation, which is described in detail. Chapter 3, “Origin of Solar Energy,” summarizes the astrophysics of solar energy, including the basic parameters and structure of the Sun. The gravitational contraction theory of Lord Kelvin and the nuclear fusion theory of Hans Bethe for the origin of stellar energy are presented. Chapter 4, “Tracking Sunlight,” is a self‐contained but elementary treatment of the positional astronomy of the Sun for nonastronomy majors. It includes an elementary derivation of the coordinate transformation formulas. It also includes a transparent derivation of the equation of time, the difference between solar time and civil time, as the basis for tracking sunlight based on time as we know it. This chapter is supplemented with a brief summary of spherical trigonometry in Appendix B. The accumulated daily direct solar radiation on various types of surfaces over a year is analyzed with graphics. Chapter 5, “Interaction of Sunlight with Earth,” presents both the effect of the atmosphere and the storage of solar energy in the ground, the basis for the so‐called shallow geothermal energy. A simplified model for scattered or diffuse sunlight is presented. Chapter 6, “Thermodynamics of Solar Energy,” starts with a summary of the basics of thermodynamics followed by several problems of the application of solar energy, including basics of heat pump and refrigeration. Chapters 7–10 deal with basic physics of solar photovoltaics and solar photochemistry. Chapter 7, “Quantum Transition,” presents basic concepts of quantum mechanics in Dirac's format, with examples of organic molecules and semiconductors, with a full derivation of the golden rule and the principle of detailed balance. Chapter 8 is dedicated to the essential concept in solar cells, the pn‐junction. Chapter 9 deals with semiconductor solar cells, including a full derivation of the Shockley–Queisser limit, with descriptions of the detailed structures of crystalline, thin‐film, and tandem solar cells. Chapter 10, “Solar Photochemistry,” presents an analysis of photosynthesis in plants as well as research in artificial photosynthesis. Various organic solar cells are described, including dye‐sensitized solar cells and bilayer organic solar cells. Chapter 11 deals with solar thermal applications, including solar water heaters and solar thermal electricity generators. The vacuum tube collector and the thermosiphon solar heat collectors are emphasized. Concentration solar energy is also presented, with four types of optical concentrators: trough, parabolic dish, heliostat, and especially the compact linear Fresnel concentrator. Chapter 12 deals with energy storage, including sensible and phase‐change thermal energy storage systems and rechargeable batteries, especially lithium–ion batteries. The last chapter, “Building with Sunshine,” introduces architectural principles of solar energy utilization together with civil engineering elements.
Experience in teaching the course has shown me that the student backgrounds are highly diversified, including physics, chemistry, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, chemical engineering, architecture, civil engineering, environmental science, materials science, aerospace engineering, economy, and finance. Although it is a senior undergraduate and beginning graduate‐level course, it must accommodate a broad spectrum of student backgrounds. Therefore, necessary scientific background knowledge is part of the course. The book is designed with this in mind. For example, background knowledge in positional astronomy, thermodynamics, and quantum mechanics is included. For students who have already taken these courses, the background material serves as a quick review and as a reference for the terminology and symbols used in this book. The presentation of the background science is for the purpose of solar energy utilization only, along a “fast track.” For example, quantum mechanics is presented using an “empirical” approach, starting from direct perception of quantum states by a scanning tunneling microscope; thus, the quantum states are not merely a mathematical tool but a perceptible reality. The scanning tunneling microscope is also an important tool in the research for novel devices in solar energy conversion.
At an insert of the book, a gallery of color graphics and photographs is constructed and compiled. It serves as a visual introduction to the mostly mathematical presentation of the materials, which is useful for intuitive understanding of the concepts.
During the course of giving lectures and writing the lecture notes, I have encountered many unexpected difficulties. Solar energy is a multidisciplinary topic. The subject fields comprise astronomy, thermodynamics, quantum mechanics, solid‐state physics, organic chemistry, solid‐state electronics, environmental science, mechanical engineering, architecture, and civil engineering. As a unified textbook and reference book, a complete and consistent set of terminology and symbols must be designed which should be as consistent as possible with the established terminology and symbols of the individual fields, but yet be concise and self‐consistent. A list of symbols is included toward the end of the book.
I sincerely thank Professors Irving Herman, Richard Osgood, and Vijay Modi for helping me setting up the solar energy course. I am especially grateful to many business executives and researchers in the field of solar energy who provided valuable information: Steve O'Rourke, then Managing Director and Research Analyst of Deutsch Bank, currently Chief Strategy Officer of MEMC Electronics, for detailed analysis of solar photovoltaic industry. John Breckenridge, Managing Director of investment bank Good Energies, for information on renewable energy investment in the world. Robert David de Azevedo, Executive Director of Brazilian American Chamber of Commerce, for information and contacts of renewable energy in Brazil. Loury A. Eldada, Chief Technology Officer of HelioVolt, for manufacture technology of CIGS thin‐film solar cells. Ioannis Kymissis, a colleague professor at Columbia University, for two guest lectures in the Solar Energy Course about organic solar cells. Section 10.5 is basically based on literature suggested by him. Vasili Fthenakis, also a colleague professor at Columbia University, for valuable information about economy and environment issues of solar cells. John Perlin, a well‐known solar energy historian, for kindly sending me electronic versions of his two books. George Kitzmiller, owner of Miami Pluming and Solar Heating Company, for showing me a number of 80‐years‐old solar hot water heaters still working in Miami. Margaret O'Donoghue Castillo, President of American Institute of Architects, for introducing me to the geothermal heating and cooling system in AIA, New York City. Mitchell Thomashaw, President of Union College, Maine, for letting me eyewitness the history of solar energy in the United States through brokering the donation of a Carter‐era White House solar panel to the Solar Energy Museum in Dézhōu, China. Academician Hé Zuòxiū, a prominent advocate of renewable energy, for helping me establish contacts in renewable‐energy research and industry in China. Lı̆ Shēnshēng, Professor Emeritus of Beijing Normal Institute, for kindly gifted me an autographed copy of his out‐of‐print book Tàiyángnéng Wùlı̆xué. Published in 1996, it is probably the first book about the physics of solar energy in any language. Mr. Huáng Míng, founder and CEO of Himin Solar Energy Group and Vice President of International Solar Energy Association, for many inspiring discussions and a visit to Himin Corp, including an impressive production line for vacuum tube solar collectors. Professor Huáng Xuéjié, a long‐time researcher of lithium rechargeable batteries and the founder of Phylion Battery Co., for many discussions about electric cars and a tour to the production lines of Phylion. Mire Ma, Vice President of Yingli Green Energy Group, for valuable information and a tour to the entire manufacturing process of solar‐grade silicon, solar cells and solar modules. Last but not least, the book could not be written without the patience and support of my wife Liching.
C. Julian Chen
Columbia University
in the City of New York
April 2011
Chapter 1Introduction
1.1 Shaping a More Livable World
The progress of human civilization depends critically on the utilization of energy. The modern industrial revolution is intimately associated with the generation and conversion of energy, as evidenced by the sequence of inventions that greatly improved the living conditions of human society, see Table 1.1.
Table 1.1: Inventions in energy conversion
Year
Invention
Inventor
1712
Original steam engine
Thomas Newcomen
1764
Improved steam engine
James Watt
1807
Steam boat
Robert Fulton
1814
Steam locomotive
George Stephenson
1861
Gaseline engine
Nicolaus Otto
1884
Steam turbine
Charles Parsons
1898
Diesel engine
Rudolph Diesel
In the 18th century, the invention and improvement of steam engine not only drove up the modern industry, but also revolutionized transportation, especially trains and steamboats. The invention of light bulbs by Thomas Edison in 1878 started the era of centralized generation and transmission of electrical power. The steam turbine was invented. After the invention of the internal combustion engines (ICE), including the Otto engine (gasoline engine) and the Diesel engine, the efficiency is increased to more than 20%. And The ICE is significantly lighter than the steam engine. Transportation was revolutionized. Petroleum‐based liquid fuels took central stage.
In the 20th century, the worldwide industrialization made an explosive expansion of energy generation and conversion. The invention of airplanes and the widespread application of electricity accelerates that trend. Figure. 1.1 shows the annual consumption of energy in different sectors, the data of 2015 in the United States. The total energy consumption is 102.9 EJ. The largest sector of energy consumption is electricity, accounts almost 40%. The second largest is transportation, roughly 28%. Residential and commercial consumption account for about 10%.
Figure 1.1 Energy consumption by sectors.
