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Designing - The Cells

A distinction I should make before going any further is the difference between solar cells and solar panels. When I am talking about the solar cells I am talking about the individual square parts inside of the panel. The panel being the housing for the cells, some sort of stiff material for the back and a sheet of glass over the front. The cells produce power and the panel houses and protects the fragile cells.

The first step of designing the solar panels was to get the actual solar cells I'd be using since literally, everything was dependent on their size.

I was able to find some panels for fairly cheap on eBay, so I officially began the project with the purchase of 10 A Grade 4.8W 19.6% 156mm Mono Silicon Cells.


Here's what that means:

A Grade - Panels are completely intact. B, C, or D Grade will have increasingly large chips missing from the cells. Read more here.
4.8W - This is the power output.
19.6% - This is the claimed efficiency of the cells.
156mm - This is the size, they are square with chopped off corners. (6"x6")
Mono Silicon - This is the construction of the cells, Mono Silicon is the highest efficiency and most space efficient. Read more about the different types of panels here.

The cells seem to have an iridescent quality to them. They are normally the dark blue but occasionally can have a shimmer of light blue when the angle is just right.


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