BRE DG532/1 PDF

Introduction

Climate change and depleting resources of fossil fuels have increased the significance of renewable energy in the sources of energy that we use. Renewable energy can be generated from a number of sources including wind, sunlight, moving water, biomass and heat contained in the ground or in water. These sources are universally available, albeit with variations, and generating renewable energy from them can significantly reduce carbon emissions.

Solar photovoltaic (PV) modules generate electricity from sunlight and have emerged as one of the most widely accepted and used renewable technologies[1]. Currently there is a significant amount of research[2] aimed at improving the efficiency of the technology and reducing the cost of solar PV systems.