Question

A solar cell, 3.0 cm square, has an output of 350 mA at 0.80 V when exposed to full sunlight. A solar panel that delivers close to 1.0 A of current at an emf of 120 V to an external load is needed. How many cells will you need to create the panel? How big a panel will you need, and how should you connect the cells to one another? How can you optimize the output of your solar panel?

Answer 1

Answer:

You will need 450 cells (3 cm each) to meet the voltage/current requirement.

The panel must be 3 cells in one side, by 150 cell in another side. 1350 cm^2 or 0.135 m^2. They must be connected 3 in row in parallel (to add current), then each of the former group must be connected in series to meet the voltage, so it would be 150 rows of connected in series.

The panel can be optimized using a voltage inverter, to convert current to voltage. In this way, less cells can be used achieving the same output specs.

Explanation:

To meet the voltage:

120 [v] required voltage

0.8 [v] voltage of each cell

$\frac{120}{0.8} =150[v]$

So we need 150 cells in series for the voltage.

To meet the current

1.0 [A]      Required current

350[mA]=0.35[A] cell current

1/0.35=3 cell So we need 3 cells in parallel to add the currents and meet the requirement.

See the attached figure