There is a growing interest in the United States for rooftop solar panels and other on-site power sources called distributed generation (DG). Distributed generation allows users to produce their own energy by using renewable sources like solar and wind energies. Because the government acknowledges the benefits of using renewable sources of energy, many states approved a billing system years ago called net metering.
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Net metering allows electric consumers to sell the excess energy that they have generated from their on-site DG systems. It is important to take note that while many types of DG sources are eligible for credits, the use of solar power is the most common type of system promoted by many governments all over the world for net metering according to Edison Electric Institute.
Impact of Net Metering on Consumer Bills
The electric bill of customers is based on the cost of fuel used to generate the electricity and its transmission costs. Customers also need to pay fees for the maintenance of the grid, environmental improvements, and other charges. In general, customers need to pay a lot of money to their electrical utility companies by the end of the month.
Net-metered customers, on the other hand, get credit for the energy that they sell to the grid or electric companies. They use a special meter that runs forward and backward to provide credit against the electricity that they produce, thus they are only billed for the “net” energy that they use. This simply means that when the rooftop solar panels generate electricity, consumers can avoid paying for the power provided by the utility and all other fees accosted to regular consumers. Unfortunately, the grid costs that DG customers do not pay for are shifted towards the regular customers, thus they end up paying more for their electric bill.
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Why Net Metering Is Implemented?
Net metering is implemented to remove the consumers’ negative perception that the utility companies are taking advantage of them. According to James Stoutenborough (2015), net metering is adopted to encourage the growth of private investments related to renewable sources of energy as well as stimulate the local economic growth. It also promotes energy security and independence considering that the world is experiencing a looming energy crisis.
Net metering is also different with other policies since it is designed to encourage the development of renewable energy sources in many ways. It is important to take note that unlike other types of incentives, such as feed-in tariffs and energy tax breaks, net metering is endless.
Types of Net Metering Systems
Conventional net metering defined as individual net metering is not the only type of system that you can adapt. Net metering policies also include aggregated, virtual, and community net metering. Below are the things that you need to know about the different types of net metering systems.
Aggregated net metering: This type of net metering allows a property owner who has several meters in one property to implement net metering. This is highly feasible in farm properties or university compound. In the United States, around 16 states have authorized this type of net metering system.
Virtual net metering: Virtual net metering is an expanded version of the aggregated net metering. It allows property owners with several meters to distribute credits to other accounts such as tenants in a condominium. The states that have allowed this kind of net metering system include Connecticut, California, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and West Virginia.
Community net metering: This type of net metering system allows several users to buy shares from a single net metered system. For instance, residents from a community can buy from a medium-sized solar farm. The states that have approved this type of net metering system include Colorado, California, Illinois, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Rhode Island, New York, Vermont and Washington.
Effects of Net Metering
The increasing number of people installing rooftop panels can affect the flow of power along the electric distribution system or grid lines. In order to have a reliable delivery of electricity from the seller to electric companies, the distribution system should be managed in order to control the flow of the electricity. The electric companies will experience fluctuating power with net metering depending on the amount of energy produced by solar panels.
To provide support to the net metering policy, it is also crucial for electric providers to invest in a distribution system that can avoid overloading the circuits thereby causing power quality problems. Building the right infrastructures to support this system will help avoid hazards on public safety.
How Homes Can Save With Solar Panel Installation
With global warming at hand, the need to transition to low-carbon economy is at the forefront of every energy science talk. This is the reason why many countries, not only the United States, support the use of residential solar panels. Countries like Japan, United Kingdom, and Germany are on the forefront of encouraging its citizens to install residential solar panels. In fact, the USA have legislated 70% to 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emission within the next five decades.
Image courtesy of David Hawgood at Geograph.Org.UK.
Savings from Residential PV System
According to the US Energy Information Administration 2010 census, an average household in the United States consumes 958 kWh every month. This translates to 11,496 kWh annually which is equivalent to thousands of dollars each year.
If a family installs a 2.5 kilowatt PV system in their homes, they can produce around 313 kWh monthly, thus saving as much as $27 every month. The savings can become bigger if a household opts to buy a bigger solar panel system, but this is not always a good financial choice especially if the household only contains a handful of individuals.
A study conducted by the researchers from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California found that homes that are powered by PV panels can save more than $25,000 on energy costs compared with homes powered by conventional methods.
Why Is The Cost Of Solar Panels Falling?
Installing rooftop panels might be costly, but recently the prices are dropping by as much as 30%. Today, you can install PV systems on your home for $10,000 which is far cheaper compared to a decade ago. Moreover, the government provides federal tax credits wherein the state gives back 30% of your tax money just by installing and using renewable sources of energy. So what are the reasons for the falling costs of installing solar energy for your home?
Scale of economy: Today, the global production of solar panel cells has grown from 24,000 MW in 2010 to 40,000 in 2013 because many countries have adapted these technologies. Moreover, when China came into the scene, it also contributed to the lowering of the market price of solar panels.
Reduction of soft costs: Soft costs are associated with the sales, marketing, as well as local policies that can decrease the cost of solar panels. Recently, more policies have been created to ease the use solar power cells and encourage people to use them.
Innovative ownership structures: Innovative structures that support residential solar powers are becoming available for many residents in the United States as well as other countries. The government also provides funding to people who wish to install solar panels in their homes to help them with out of pocket expenses.
Reasons Why You Save Money on Solar Power
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While solar panels can help you save money, they don’t come cheap at all. The cost of installation for a house with an average 3kWh system is $10,000. However, installing the system is considered an important investment and it comes with immediate benefits for both your finances as well as the environment.
There is a contradiction in solar energy and although the initial cost is expensive, it is outweighed by its long-term effects. There are many reasons why solar power can help you save money. One of the most important benefits of using residential solar power is getting tax credits. In the United States, for instance, the government encourages home owners to go green by offering them tax credits for using solar powers on their roofs. The tax break allows companies that produce renewable energy to recoup 30% of the cash grant.
The tax credits may vary from one state to the other, but if you live in a state where there is a high solar rating, you can find more incentives aside from tax breaks. Additional incentives may include waived fees, cash backs, and fast construction permits.
You can also sell excess power to your local companies by feed in tariffs. Feed in tariffs is a policy designed to improve and accelerate the investment for technologies that harness renewable energies. It achieves this by providing long-term contracts to energy producers based on the cost of generation of the solar panels.
Solar panels installed on residential areas are a great way to save money and also give less output to the environment. These are the reasons why solar energy is becoming a viable option for most residents.
Are Solar Roads A Possibility?
In designing big engineering projects, sustainability is always a critical factor to look into. This means that building structures based on limited resources, but having a great design for maximum performance is of prime importance. When it comes to big undertakings among the engineering projects lack, when it comes to sustainability and ingenuity, are roads. Roads are necessary for us to get to our destination, but other than that roads don’t really serve multiple functions at all.
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An intriguing project was established in the Netherlands recently and a team of engineers have developed the unique solar road on November pf 2014 that is capable of producing 3,000 kWh of energy. This amount of energy is enough to power a small household for a year. The spokesman for this project, Sten de Wit, said that the SolaRoad is still in its experimental stage, but they are hoping that it will be successful in the future. Currently, the road is just a 230-foot stretch of asphalt that is embedded with solar cells protected by layers of safety glass. This road is used as a bicycle lane and more than 150,000 cyclists have already ridden over this solar road. Currently, the engineers are developing solar panels that can withstand large vehicles.
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Structural and Electrical Design Requirements of Solar Roads
Are solar roads possible? The answer is yes. However, to build solar roads builders and engineers need to meet the structural as well as electrical design requirements of solar roads. Andrew Northmore (2012) from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering of the University of Waterloo noted the requirements of building solar roads. The structural and electrical design requirements of solar roads are as follows:
The transparent layer should not deflect over the other cell compartments so that sunlight can still be absorbed by the solar panel cells.
The structure should be strong enough to support the distributed load from the vehicle tires without resulting in fracture or deformation.
The road should be resistant to corrosion from salt and other contaminants. It should also have a modular design so that it can easily be maintained.
The weight of the road should be light enough so that minimal number of people can maneuver it for testing as well as installation.
The road panel should not be shaded so that the roads can have optimal exposure to sunlight.
The panels need to be weatherproof so that elements like rainwater will not get inside the panel and interfere with the electronics.
The interconnection between the cells should be strong enough to withstand deflection.
A diode should be installed on the electrical output line of the panel in order to block the reverse current that may damage the solar cells embedded within the panels.
Challenges of Building Solar Roadways
There are only a few prototypes of solar roads in the world and the biggest problem about building them involves the cost. Unfortunately, solar roads require huge numbers of solar panels and sturdy materials to withstand a lot of pressure from vehicles.
In the article written by Dixie Somers (2015), the shifting of the ground plays a vital role in the success of building solar roads. Aside from the pressure under the road, the constant maintenance for repairing the road panels that have been broken due to the changes on the ground, natural wear and tear, and impacts due to accidents can translate to large sums of money; thus making them not feasible if implemented on a large-scale basis.
Moreover, solar roads still needs more research especially on how to mitigate the many problems tin making the roads last longer. Unfortunately, some of the current proposed solutions are lackluster. For instance, the solution of constructing heated roads to prevent frost during winter season can be very costly even for ordinary roads. In fact, implementing such a solution with the use of solar roads will cost twice as much compared to using non-renewable sources of energy.
Despite the challenges that can prevent solar roadways from replacing conventional roads, there are also some roads that are not feasible for solar road installation like major highways—the reason behind is safety of motorists. However, solar roads can be used to replace a private driveway and can be used to generate electricity not for the entire city but only for your house.
So the question again, can solar roads replace all thoroughfares? While it can be implemented as a small-scale project, current technology is not substantial enough to produce large-scale solar roads. Perhaps in the future, we will be able to enjoy such an engineering innovation.
The Case for Solar Farms on Landfills or Unusable Lands
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The United States relies solely on the non-renewable sources of energy such as natural gas and oil. Unfortunately, the combustion of these fuels emits carbon dioxide that can contribute to global warming. The adoption of renewal sources of energy such as geothermal, hydroelectric, solar, and biomass are better alternatives for the environment as well as public health.
Recently, the use of solar energy is becoming popular especially in places that are dry and receive a lot of sunlight each year – such as desert land areas. The development of solar farms is very beneficial, but the problem is it requires a lot of land. While giant solar farms have been built in desert regions, it makes it very expensive to transport the energy harnessed from the sun to where it is needed. In most cases, giant solar farms need to establish expensive transmission lines to bring power to distant towns and cities.
Building Solar Farms on Municipal Landfills
Since building solar farms on desert areas is very expensive and oftentimes not feasible, many scientists and lawmakers are looking at the possibility of developing solar farms on municipal landfills. This is due to the optimal condition the area presents for solar projects. In the study conducted by Jenna Spooner et. al. (2014), they presented the benefits of using landfills and other unusable lands for solar farm projects as follows:
Landfills are very attractive locations as it resolves all barriers related to the implementation of solar farms. It provides a large space for utility-grid solar farms that is out of sight, but not far from the residents.
Landfills are in close proximity to power lines and roads, thus it can immediately deliver energy to the consumers.
The space in landfills is also offered at a lower cost and can thus support large scale projects.
According to McDonough (2012), closed landfills are sealed with polyethylene cap and buried by a thick layer of compacted soil seeded with grass. The grass is constantly mowed and lay unused for a long time. So, developing landfills for solar energy generation makes the unusable land more useful.
Implemented Cases of Landfills Turned To Solar Farms
In the United States of America, several landfills have already been converted into solar farms. To date, proposals for a solar farm installation in Saratoga Springs in New York is being considered. According to the study, the project aims to curb the electric consumption of the city with the intention of selling the excess energy back to the grid. The project also provides the opportunity to convert an unusable land and turn it into something that can become the asset of the community.
Another case of a landfill turned into a useful solar farm is the Hickory Ridge Landfill located outside Atlanta in Georgia. The landfill has already reached its capacity thus a team of experts installed 7,000 thin PV solar panels that are plastered to the geomembrane that covered the wastes. The geomembrane is necessary to secure and provide a clean surface for the solar panels. The cost of establishing the solar farms at Hickory Ridge was around $5 million, but everyone in the community is hopeful about how their new solar farms will turn out.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), there are about 10,000 old municipal landfills across the United States that can serve as the groundwork for solar energy farms. Most of the landfills are located in the outskirts of the cities but they are at close proximity with power lines, thus making it accessible for everyone.
Hickory Ridge Before Solar Panels
Hickor Ridge Landfill with Solar Panels
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Implementation Barriers
Although there is an abundance of landfills where solar farms can be built, there are several barriers that prevent the implementation of solar projects. First, the funding grants are limited considering that most solar farm projects require large funding and not too many institutions are willing to invest in such projects. Further, applying for grants is an extremely competitive market and not everyone who applies for funding get it.
Another barrier to such project is the local policy. Building solar farms on landfills are considered as large-scale projects and it requires extensive review from stakeholders and the government. In most cases, local policies get in the way of building solar farms on landfills. Such policies include codes, permits, as well as zoning ordinances. In most cases, the local government needs to develop policies for the solar farms first before they can even consider construction of the solar farms and that can take years of policy making.
Tips for Energy Efficient Homes
The average household in the United States usually spends around $2,100 on their energy bills annually. This is based on the data from the U.S. Department of Energy. In the report released by Katherine Friedrich et. al. in 2009, many people have thought of ways on how to save energy by embracing energy-efficient programs. However, the energy savings produced by conventional methods only account between $0.016 and $0.033 per KWh.
The thing is everybody is responsible for their own energy consumption; thus, whether you are a homeowner, an entrepreneur, student, or if you simply live with your parents, you can still do simple things to reduce your energy consumption. This article will discuss the different ways of achieving an energy-efficient home.
Adapt Energy-Saving Habits
Adopting energy-saving habits is very important if you want to have an energy-efficient home. These energy-saving habits refer to the simple things that you do in your house that can help save electricity. Below are some of the energy-saving habits that you can adopt.
Unplug your appliances: Many people turn off their electricity and put them on the standby mode. Unfortunately, electrical devices on standby mode still consume 5% of electricity. So, instead of putting your devices on standby mode, make sure that you unplug your appliances from the outlet. You can save as much as $30 annually if you do this habit every day.
Control your heating: More than half of the money that you spend on your energy bills goes to heating your house. It is important to control your heating by installing a thermostat, programmer, and radiator valves to control the temperature in your room. It is also crucial to remember that lowering the thermostat setting by as much as one degree can save between $80 and $90 annually. According to the study conducted by the researchers from the School of Architecture in the University of Virginia, using smart sensors can greatly save around 6.8% of your annual energy bill. By installing smart heating controls, you can program your thermostat to automatically regulate how warm you want your home to be.
Use LED lights: Using LED lights does not only brighten homes, but it can also save a lot of energy. In fact, it is 80% more energy efficient than halogen and incandescent lamps combined.
Design an Energy-Efficient Home
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An energy-efficient home has a passive solar design. If your house is designed properly, it can contribute to better heating, cooling as well as daylighting of any kind of building. According to Judy Fosdick (2012), passive solar heating design involves the collection of solar energy by properly orienting the south windows, storage of energy in thermal mass materials like brick walls and concrete slabs, and the natural distribution of stored energy in living spaces by using radiation and natural convections.
Passive solar design does not cost a lot and it can be implemented during the construction or renovation of buildings. A properly designed house has fewer temperature fluctuations during the day, thus higher stability of thermal comfort resulting to a more energy efficient home.
Installing Rooftop Solar Panels
Installing rooftop solar panels allow you to harness the energy from the sun and convert it to electricity using small semiconductors. Also called photovoltaic cells, the energy harnessed from the sun fires the electrons in the semiconductors which produces direct current which will eventually be converted to alternate current. The electricity can then be saved for later use.
Rooftop solar panels cost approximately $3,000 KWh which already includes the installation charges. Although installing rooftop solar panels has a high initial cost, it can bring a lot of long-term benefits. According to the US Department of Energy, many households have saved between $44 and $187 monthly on their electric bills. Below are several ways that rooftop solar panels can help you save money.
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Solar incentives: Many states in the US provide strong tax breaks and incentives for homeowners installing solar energy panels; thus consumers do not only save money on their energy costs, but they also earn money from incentives. This policy has helped in lowering the total cost for solar power system installation making it a more viable option for many people.
Price of solar panels: It used to be that the price of installing rooftop solar panels was pretty high; however, recently the price has dropped down significantly. This made solar panels more accessible to many organizations and homeowners for a more sustainable source of energy while also saving money long-term.
There are many things that you can do to make your home energy efficient. You can drastically change your home to incorporate an energy-efficient design or you can simply adopt small changes at a time.
