Angle of Sun on a Panel

The position of the Sun changes during the day. There

is also a change of the Sun's position, or angle in the sky, from summer to winter. The Sun is
higher in the sky in the summer. As the position of the Sun changes the angle of sunlight that
falls onto a solar panel changes.
Solar panels get the most sunlight energy when they are facing directly at the Sun. To
optimize the amount of energy received some are designed to move or track with the Sun
during the day. Since tracking systems are an additional cost some panel positions are only
changed in winter and summer or not at all.
If you are under 18 years old, get permission from an adult to do this experiment.

Science Fair Project Idea/ Objective:

To demonstrate how the power from a solar panel changes as the angle of light that hits it
changes. You will develop this project idea by measuring the change in amperage of the solar
panel as the time of day changes.

Hypothesis:
A solar panel will deliver the most power when it is facing directly at the sun.

Materials:
1. Solar Panel
2. Multi-meter to measure Milli-Amps.
3. Graph paper and pencil

Schematic: (large image)

Set Up:
1. Find a single sunny spot outside that gets sun for most of the day. You will do your
experiments once every hour from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM.
2. Connect the ammeter to the solar panel and set the solar panel on a flat surface. Set the
ammeter output so that it will read milli-amps (mA).

Procedure
1. Print out this work sheet or make your own.
2. Set up your equipment. Lay the solar panel on a flat surface so that it is facing straight
up and keep it in the same position for all of your experiments.
3. Begin your testing at 9:00. Record the time of day and the mA reading on your
ammeter.
4. Leave the solar panel in place. Come back in 1 hour to collect more data. Record the
time of day and the mA reading on your ammeter.
5. Repeat step #4 at 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 1:00, 2:00, 3:00 and 4:00. Each time, record the
time of day and mA reading on your ammeter.
6. Graph your data for mAmps (Y-axis) as a function of the time of day (X-axis).

Expected Results:
Your readings should be the highest when the Sun is at its highest point in the sky because this
is when your solar panel is exposed to the most direct sunlight. At what time did you get your
greatest reading?

Try This:
Try this same experiment during both winter and summer. During which season do you think
you will get the highest readings? Why?

Further Research:
Information at the U.S. Department of Energy website on photovoltaic systems that use Sun
tracking equipment.
See our other pages for ideas for a science fair project in solar energy.

Solar Powered DC Electrical Motor: Directly and

Indirectly Powered
Large Image

A solar powered dc motor is a simple demonstration of how solar power can be used directly
in some applications. Solar panels transform light energy into electrical energy. The electrical
energy from the solar panel is direct current or dc electricity so it can be used by motors that
run on dc electrical power.

Motor Directly Powered by a Solar Panel

If we hook up a solar panel directly to a dc electrical motor as shown in the picture, then the
solar panel is sending power directly to the motor and the motor is using the electrical energy
immediately. In this case the motor is "Directly Powered by Solar Energy".

Motor Indirectly Powered by a Solar Panel

If we hook up the solar panel in a parallel circuit with a motor and a battery then the solar
panel will charge the battery and the dc motor will get dc electrical energy from the battery.
The energy used to power the motor came from the battery. However, the energy in the battery
came from solar energy so we say that the motor is "Indirectly Powered by Solar Energy".

Science Fair Project Idea/ Objective:

This is a simple idea that can be added to your science fair project to help demonstrate
applications of solar energy. You can also use this solar powered dc electrical motor and
spinner as an additional demonstration and test instrument for the science fair topics on
Amount of Light that Hits a Solar Panel, Angle of Light that Hits a Solar Panel, Wavelength
of Light that Hits a Solar Panel and Concentration of Light on a Solar Panel.

Tip:
Create something, like a spinner, that you can attach to the motor so that when the motor spins
it will be easy to tell that it is working. See the picture at the top of this page for an example
of spinner. Below there are instructions on how to make a spinner for your motor.

Materials:
1. Solar Panel
2. dc electrical motor
3. Spinner
1. Wooden Dowel (about 1/2" diameter)
2. Drill to make a hole in the dowel
3. Cardboard (about 6" x 6")
4. Paper Image
5. Glue

Schematic: dc Motor Running Directly on Solar Power: (large image)

How it works: Light energy hits the solar panel and is transformed into dc electrical energy.
The electrical energy passes through the wires to the motor. The motor runs!

Schematic: Solar Battery Charger: (large image)

How it works: Light energy hits the solar panel and is transformed into dc electrical energy.
The electrical energy passes through the wires to the battery. The resistor keeps the electrical
energy in the wires from flowing too fast. The diode works like a safety valve and keeps the
electrical energy from flowing out of the battery and back to the solar panel when there is no
light.

Schematic: Combined Solar Battery Charger and dc Motor Running

Indirectly on Solar Power: (large image)

How it works: When you close Switch #1 and open Switch #2 the light energy hits the solar
panel where it is transformed into electrical energy that passes through the wires to the
battery.
When you open Switch #1 and close Switch #2 the energy that is stored in the battery passes
through the wires to the motor and the motor runs!
Solar powered garden lights operate on the same basic principal except that they switch off
and on automatically by using a photoresistor.

Set Up - Putting it all together:

1. Make the Spinner to attach to the motor
1. Wooden Dowel with small hole
2. Cardboard Circle

3. Sun Image
4. Glue
5. Glue the spinner to the dowel and attach to motor
2. Connect the solar panel to the motor
3. Find some sun and watch it spin. For some solar panels you might be able to use a 100
Watt light bulb as the light source.

Further Reading:
See how solar garden lights work at How Stuff Works.
A solar panel needs direct sunlight in order to work best. When clouds or trees block the sun,
the solar panel generates less power than if it had full sunlight. When engineers design solar
powered homes or applications they know it is important to install a solar panel in a location
that will get the most direct sunlight.
If you are under 18 years old, get permission from an adult to do this experiment.

Science Fair Project Idea/ Objective:

Demonstrate how the power from a solar panel can change as the amount of light changes.
You will develop this idea by measuring the amperage output of the solar panel for different
light bulb outputs.

Tip:
Light output is listed on the bulb packages in terms of "Lumens". Lumens is not the same as
Watts. Watts is the energy used. However, the lumens will generally increase with watts. For a
consistent test you should choose all light bulbs from the same manufacturer.

Hypothesis:
A solar panel will deliver more power as it is exposed to increasing amounts of light.

Materials:
1. Solar Panel
2. 4 light bulbs with different light outputs. Different lumens values.
3. Lamp for the light bulbs
4. Multi-meter to measure Milli-Amps.
5. Graph paper and pencil

Schematic: (large image)

Set Up:
1. Connect the ammeter to the solar panel and set the solar panel on a flat surface. Set the
ammeter output so that it will read milli-amps (mA).
2. Set up your lamp so that light will shine directly onto the solar panel.
3. Be sure you will get a reading when you use the bulb with the lowest lumens. You may
have to adjust the distance between the lamp and the solar panel.

Procedure
1. Print out this work sheet or make your own.
2. Test 3 of the light bulbs with lumens values that are highest, lowest and 1 in-between.
o Put the bulb in the lamp.
o Turn on the lamp.
o Record the mA reading of your multi-meter.
3. Graph your data for the 3 bulbs for mAmps (Y-axis) as a function of lumens (X-axis).
4. Draw a line that will connect the 3 data points.
5. Look at the line on your graph and predict the mA value of the remaining light bulb.
6. Test the remaining light bulb and add that data point to your graph.

Expected Results:
The line will be fairly straight so you should be able to accurately predict the mAmp readings
of other light bulbs based on the light output (lumens).

Try This:

1. Try taking measurements outside in the Sun. Try it with and without clouds. Try it on a
day that is partially cloudy and watch the change of your meter as the clouds move in
and out of the path of the sunlight.
2. You can find light bulbs rated at the same watts from different manufacturers that give
off different amounts of lumens. Get 1 or 2 more light bulbs from different
manufacturers that have the same watt rating but different lumens ratings. Use your
graph to predict the mAmp output of your solar panel for these bulbs. Test the bulbs.
How was your prediction? Why?
The goal of these experiments is to learn about how the angle of incidence affects the
efficiency of solar cells.

Define angle of incidence. How does it relate to the efficiency of a solar cell? Is this a
linear or non-linear relationship?

How can solar cells be optimized with respect to the angle of incidence?

What are the independent variables in this experiment? The dependant variables?What
are the constants?

How does a solar cell work?

Solar cells convert sunlight into electrical energy. Different types of solar cells have varying
degrees of efficiency and cost. The term angle of incidence refers to the angle of a ray to a
surface is measured by the angle between the ray and the normal vector of the surface
(generally, a line vertical to the earth). Since solar cells are expensive, their efficiency can be
bolstered by mounting them to devices that move them so that they are always at the optimal
angle of incidence with respect to energy output. In this experiment, students will determine
the optimal angle for energy output.

PURPOSE
The purpose of this experiment was to determine what angle of incident light striking solar
cells produces the most electricity.
I became interested in this idea in third grade when we made a solar oven.
The information gained from this experiment will help people know what angle they should
place solar cells.

HYPOTHESIS
My hypothesis was that the solar cells facing the sun directly (90) would be the most
efficient.

I based my hypothesis on the World Book Encyclopedia page 578 that says, "Solar cells are
the most efficient when they are facing the sun."
Top of page

EXPERIMENT DESIGN
The constants in this study were:

The amount of light hitting the cells

The size of the cell

The material in the solar cell

The method of measuring electrical output

The manipulated variable was the angle light struck the cell.
The responding variable was the amount of electricity produced by the different angle of the
cells.
To measure the responding variable I used an electric multimeter that measures in milliwatts.
Top of page

MATERIALS
QUANTITY ITEM DESCRIPTION
1

solar cell

multimeter that measures in

milliwatts

music stand

source of white light

protractor

Top of page

PROCEDURES
1. Gather materials.
2. Place silicon cell on music stand facing the light,
3. Determine of the angle the cell faces the incoming light with the protractor. Aim the
protractors angle arm at the light source, then turn the music stand until the correct angle is
showing
4. Set up the multimeter by attaching it to the solar cell wires. Be sure to attach the cells red
wire to the multimeters red probe. Also attach black to black.
5. Turn on meter and set to read millivolts.
6. Measure electricity produced at 90 degrees.
7. Measure electricity produced at 100 degrees.
8. Measure electricity produced at 110 degrees.
9. Measure electricity produced at 120 degrees.
10. Measure electricity produced at 130 degrees.
11. Measure electricity produced at 140 degrees.
12. Measure electricity produced at 150 degrees.
13. Measure electricity produced at 160 degrees.
14. Measure electricity produced at 170 degrees.
15. Measure electricity produced at 180 degrees.
16. repeat 3 times.
Top of page

RESULTS
The purpose of this experiment was to determine what angle of incident light striking solar
cells produces the most electricity.
The results of the experiment were that the solar cells facing the light gathered the most
electricity
See data and graphs

CONCLUSION
My hypothesis was that the solar cells facing the sun directly would be the most efficient.
The results indicate that this hypothesis should be accepted.
Because of the results of this experiment, I wonder if I should have had more variables.
If I were to conduct this project again I would have more trials (replicate), and make more
variations.
--

The Mighty Power of Solar

Abstract

Background Research

Problem & Hypothesis

Materials & Procedure

Data & Results

Conclusion

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