VERY INTERESTING: SOLAR CHARGER

 Hello ladies and gents this is the Viking telling you that today we are talking about

SOLAR CHARGERS

What Is A Solar Charger?

A solar charger is a solar panel that provides electricity to charge an associated battery. They are currently typically handheld and therefore portable. However, there are also a growing number of non-portable, standalone solar charger units being installed in cities, for example to provide mobile phone and tablet charging facilities for the public.

How Does A Solar Charger Work?

A solar charger consists of just three components:

• A solar panel
• A rechargeable battery
• A charge controller

The Solar Panel

A solar charger charging a telephone

The solar panel is made up of photovoltaic ( PV) cells. In common with all photovoltaic/ PV cells, they contain light-sensitive materials that convert sunlight into small amounts of electrical current. When sunlight shines onto the solar panel, the resulting electricity is sent to the battery, subject to the regulating effects of the charge controller.

The Rechargeable Battery

A solar charger can recharge lead batteries, NiCad batteries or for best performance, nickel–metal hydride (NiMH) batteries. The battery stores the electricity generated by the solar panel for later use by any electrical devices that are connected to it. This point bears emphasizing: the battery allows for maximum usage of the solar charger in two key respects:

It accumulates energy generated by the solar panel, so that the resulting electricity can be delivered at a far faster rate than a solar panel could achieve on its own.

Perhaps even more importantly, this stored energy is also available around the clock, including at nighttime.

Charge Controller

Since the voltage produced by solar panels can vary depending on the amount of sunlight it receives, a charge controller is included with a solar charger to regulate the amount of voltage delivered.

Types of Solar Panels Used In A Solar Charger

Solar charge design and use is influenced by the type of solar panel used. In layman terms, there are essentially three types in common use:

• Fixed
• Folding
• Flexible

Fixed simply means a normal, rigid solar panel (or group), all in one plane. These can be of any size, and indeed are used in solar energy generating stations.

Folding is really just an application of fixed panels, hinged to enable folding. This is useful to make the unit more portable.

Flexible, as the name suggests, uses a thin film solar panel to enable a far more flexible, even rollable panel. This is particularly useful when attaching to active wear, for example, rucksacks.

The Many Uses for A Solar Charger

Solar charge uses are nearly so widespread as to appear almost limitless. At high level, the most popular solar charger uses include:

• Travel chargers for mobile phones, tablet devices, cameras, gaming devices and laptops
• Laptop bags, rucksacks and “solar backpacks” with an integrated solar charger
• Standalone non-portable charging stations for ebikes, solar power units for public spaces and portable solutions for homes.

and as always have a chilled day from the Viking