At a certain location, the solar power per unit area reaching the Earth's surface is 180 W/m2 averaged over a 24-hour day. Suppose you live in a solar powered house whose average power requirement is 3.2 kW.
At what rate must solar energy reach your solar panels if your solar panels have a typical coversion efficiency of 14 %. (In other words, what power must your solar panels receive?) Answer in both kiloWatts and Watts.
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To calculate the rate at which solar energy must reach your solar panels, you need to consider the conversion efficiency of your panels and your average power requirement.
Step 1: Convert the average power requirement to Watts (since the solar power per unit area is given in Watts/m^2).
Average power requirement = 3.2 kW = 3,200 Watts
Step 2: Determine the actual power your solar panels need to receive, taking into account the conversion efficiency.
Power required by solar panels = Average power requirement / Conversion efficiency
Power required by solar panels = 3,200 Watts / 0.14
Power required by solar panels = 22,857.14 Watts
Step 3: Convert the power in Watts to kilowatts.
Power required by solar panels = 22,857.14 Watts / 1,000
Power required by solar panels = 22.86 kW
Therefore, the rate at which solar energy must reach your solar panels is 22.86 kW or 22,857.14 Watts.