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Solar energy output is less predictable than fossil fuels and other energy sources, and it can alter seasonally and even hourly as the weather changes.
Fremont, CA: As the cost of solar panels has decreased, it is swiftly replacing numerous unsustainable energy sources. However, one of the most challenging difficulties in mainstreaming solar energy is less to do with producing energy and more about what users do with all of the energy that users do create. That is, determining how to store solar energy is far more difficult than deciding how to generate solar energy in the very first place.
What makes solar energy storage a difficult task?
Solar energy output is less predictable than fossil fuels and other energy sources, and it can alter seasonally and even hourly as the weather changes. Furthermore, people know that solar energy only gets created when the sun shines on the solar panels, which implies that the panels produce no energy for several hours each day. As a result, they have had to invent mechanisms for storing the energy generated during peak solar hours so that they can utilize it later after the sun has set. On the surface, this may not appear to be a significant issue, but it is.
What is waiting for solar energy storage in the future?
The inherent limits of some battery types are another issue with the existing solar energy storage technologies. With the introduction of Tesla's Power Wall and other novel storage solutions, huge Lithium-Ion batteries are moving in the right way. Because of the reliance on Lithium-Ion batteries in so many different sectors, these batteries are smaller, lighter, and easier to create. Furthermore, they require extremely little maintenance and may withstand repeated deep cycle charges without injury for many years. However, many outdated solar energy storage systems continue to depend on ineffective battery technology.
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