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(Fortune)   You know it's hot when even solar panels can't handle it   (fortune.com) divider line
    More: Interesting, Nuclear power, solar power industry, solar panels, grips of a record-breaking heat wave, nuclear power plants, temperature records, high season, electricity demand  
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1610 clicks; posted to Business » on 19 Jul 2022 at 11:54 PM (35 weeks ago)   |   Favorite    |   share:  Share on Twitter share via Email Share on Facebook



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2022-07-20 12:39:17 AM  
1 vote:
This is a known problem. It is also known to be exaggerated. The remedy is simple.

Let's say you are going to have 20% less generation on REALLY hot days over, say 35 degC. And 10% less generation at 30 degC and higher. Meh. Build 20% more generation capacity and forget about it. OR double your solar and get one more inverter and get a refrigeration unit for the inverters and you are done.

With EVs, the solution seems to be "make the battery bigger" and with coal generation plants, the solution is "let's make more, and not clean coal either, let's do it dirty." Solar is not a "finesse" thing. More is better. And it is cheap, and you already have the hardware, just bolt on some more panels and stop crying.  It just works. So build more. Way more. You need more? Build more. It is a no brainer.

And enjoy your greater capacity the rest of the year too.

I consider it to be a non-issue. Really. As a solar owner, it has never bothered me. I guess you want to factor it into your original plans, but people usually overbuild systems anyway.
 
2022-07-20 1:46:52 AM  
1 vote:

2fardownthread: With EVs, the solution seems to be "make the battery bigger"


Tell that to the Nissan Ariya, any entry level Korean EV, or the new Tesla Model Y Standard Range AWD.

You almost made it a whole post without spreading weird propaganda. Almost.
 
2022-07-20 1:51:11 AM  
1 vote:

uncoveror: Cool them with evaporative coolers since conventional air conditioning is prohibitively expensive.


I've seen some panels here in Japan have cooling loops almost like a high-end gaming PC. Obviously the panels can never be cooler than ambient temperature, but clearly the boost in efficiency from not being  outweighs the power used to move water through the system (I guess? Or else it wouldn't be a thing, right?)
 
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