Transcript Alternative Energy Presentation.ppt

An Approach to
Alternative Energy
Solutions for the
Home
By
Robert Rasmussen
An Engineering Project Submitted to the Graduate
Faculty of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
in Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the degree of
MASTER OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
What will this Project
Accomplish?
 Look into an alternative way to power a
given home in South East Connecticut
 Understand the science behind
photovoltaics
 Perform and analysis on a home based
on actual data
 Determine best energy approach to given
home
What is the best energy?
 Photovoltaics (PV) are known as solar
panels and are currently used to power
many homes in the world
 Easy to set up
 Small carbon footprint
 Greatly offset the cost of electricity
What are photovoltaics?
 Uses sun light on a semiconductive
material to create a current as shown
Home Under Analysis
 This home is a 2 story colonial with a
detached garage located in South East
Connecticut
Home Under Analysis
 Has a total of 70 m2 of roof area to install PVs
 Is facing 70˚ from due South
 Solar Insolation Levels Average are 3.41kW/m2
Calculations
Size power 
( AverageDailyUsage)(% offset )
( SolarInsol ation)( Efficiency)
 Equation shown determines the size in kW
of the solar panel system that can be
installed.
 This equation is used in this analysis
Results
 Home uses 771 kWh per month on
average
Results
 Based on sizing constraints, 40% of the
electrical bill can be offset with the use of
solar panels
 This equates to a start up cost of roughly
$26,850.00
 Break even point will be in approximately
17 years
Results
Results
 As shown on picture previous, different
percentage offsets have different break
even points
 Solar Panels have an average life span
of 25 years
 Not all options are cost effective
Conclusion
 Solar energy, no matter how popular may
not be the best alternative for home use
 Different people have different needs
 What are you willing to pay?