Solar panels – What are Solar Panels?

The term ‘Solar Panel’ refers to the two devices used for collecting energy from the sun. The first and most common of these devices are Photovoltaic Modules. These are the more commonly seen solar panels that appear on homes, buildings and on a larger scale in fields to generate electricity. Photovoltaic Panels come in a variety of shapes and sizes and are suitable for many different uses. More can be read about what these are, how they work, and their uses in more detail in the post ‘Photovoltaic Modules– What are Photovoltaic Modules?’.

The second device or type of solar panel used to harness the suns energy to generate electricity are called Solar Thermal Collectors. Solar thermal collectors are different to Photovoltaic Cells because they concentrate on capturing the suns HEAT in order to generate electricity by using a variety of different techniques. This kind of solar panel device is generally used in larger commercial or civil projects, and is less suitable for domestic use due to the size and scale of the devices needed to generate electricity using this renewable solar energy technique. More can be read about Solar Thermal Collectors in greater detail in the post ‘Solar Thermal Collectors – What are Solar Thermal collectors?’.

We will expand into more detail with regards to solar energy in following the future when we look at the benefits of solar powered energy generation. 

Tags: Photovoltaic Modules, Renewable Energy, Solar Energy, Solar Panels, Solar Thermal Collectors, Types of Solar Panels, What are Solar Panels