Page 9 - A Comprehensive Guide to Solar Energy Systems

xx Preface

• Growth trends and the future of solar power;
• Minimizing the cost of resolving variability and energy storage.
It is hoped that the book will act as a springboard for new developments and perhaps
lead to synergistic advances by linking ideas from different chapters. Another way that this
book can help in serving the solar energy industry is through contact between readers and
authors and to this effect addresses of the authors have been included.
Each topic is covered at the highest level with the very latest research and information,
each chapter of this book has been written by an expert scientist or engineer, working in
the field. Authors have been chosen for their expertise in their respective fields and come
from ten countries: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czechoslovakia, China, India, Spain, South
Africa, United Kingdom, and the United States. Most of the authors come from developed
countries as most of the research and development in this relatively new field is based in
these countries. However, we look forward to the future when new approaches to solar en-
ergy, focusing on local conditions in emerging countries, are developed by scientists and
engineers working in those countries. We are sure this new book will aid in this endeavor.
The chapters in this book can be considered as snapshots, taken in 2017, of the state of
the solar PV industry. Our book goes hand in hand with four other books we have recently
published: Climate Change: Observed Impacts on Planet Earth, 2nd edition, (Elsevier
2015); Storing Energy: With Special Reference to Renewable Energy Sources (Elsevier, 2016);
Wind Energy Engineering: A Handbook for Onshore and Offshore Wind Turbines (Elsevier,
2017); and Electricity From Sunlight: Photovoltaics Systems Integration and Sustainability
(Wiley, 2017).
For consistency and to appeal to an international audience, the International System
of Units and Quantities is reflected in the book with the use of the Système International
d’Unités (SI) throughout. Other units such as Imperial units are written in parenthesis. The
index notation is used to remove any ambiguities; for example, billion and trillion are writ-
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ten as 10 and 10 respectively. To avoid further ambiguities the concept of the quantity
calculus is used. It is based on the equation: physical quantity = number × unit. To give an
example: power = 200 W and hence: 200 = power/W. This is of particular importance in the
headings of tables and the labeling of graph axes.
A vital concern related to development and use of renewable and sustainable forms of
energy, especially solar, is the question of what can be done when it appears that politi-
cians misunderstand or ignore, and corporations overlook the realities of climate change
and the importance of renewable energy sources. The solution lies in sound scientific data
and education. As educators we believe that only a sustained grassroots movement to edu-
cate citizens, politicians, and corporate leaders of the world has any hope of success. Our
book is part of this aim. It gives an insight into the subject, which we hope readers will
consider and discuss. The book is written not only for students, teachers, professors, and
researchers into renewable energy, but also for politicians, government decision-makers,
captains of industry, corporate leaders, journalists, editors, and all other interested people.