A Case Study: Solar Panels at Boston College

Annie Meyer April 1, 2014 Farhin Zaman Elizabeth Norton

GE 580 Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA

Introduction Solar Photovoltaic: Background Solar cells and were first invented in 1954 after a lot of research around photoelectric technologies and beginning to use the ’s energy for other purposes (“Timeline…”). Now, solar has been around for many decades, and has been proved to consistently work well. Like most other technology, solar has improved immensely over time, gaining more efficiency and becoming a more viable option for homes and businesses. When it was first invented, each cell had a 6% efficiency rate (“Timeline…”). Currently most cells have an efficiency rate of approximately 25% though there are cells being developed with over 40% efficiency (“Stacking the Deck” 2014). That is truly an amazing transformation, and a testament to technology. Solar PV can be difficult to understand, especially when you are thinking about using it for your home or business. There is a long list of things to consider, but the first step is to understand the basic technology behind the panels. Solar panels contain solar cells (mentioned above) that collect heat energy from the sun. Once this energy is trapped, an inverter is used to convert the energy so that it is usable within your home to power things with electricity (EnergySage). Though you may not be able to produce enough energy to meet 100% of the needs for your home, solar PV can still help you save a lot of money. Solar PV is considered ‘clean’ energy because it harnesses energy from a renewable resource: the sun. Our planet is constantly receiving energy from the sun, so why not utilize it? Overall solar is a very environmentally friendly solution in a society that uses colossal amounts of energy. Solar at other Colleges/Universities: Brandeis, Harvard, and Stonehill By looking at the solar installations at other colleges and universities, we were able to get solid and successful examples of solar working in different ways at places similar to BC. Harvard has systems on eight of its buildings, the largest of which produces 590,000 kWh/year. The university also purchases from offsite sources and has a wind turbine mounted on one of its buildings. Combined, 17% of their electricity comes from renewable sources, while saving them money on the use of fuel and utilities (“Sustainability…” 2013). Harvard is clearly making a statement about being green and moving towards cleaner technologies. While we understand that BC hopes to do the same, the university is also working on a ten year plan to add housing and new facilities. Taking on one solar project is much more reasonable at the moment. Stonehill College is currently building one of the nation’s largest college campus solar fields. It is a 2.7 megawatt field that will contain 9,000 solar panels. The solar field is expected to save about $185,000 a year on energy costs and account for 20% of the campus’ electrical usage (“One of Nation’s…” 2014). This array produces such a large portion of the college’s energy mostly because Stonehill is only a quarter of the size of BC, making it’s energy use much smaller (“Stonehill College” 2014). In addition, field arrays have to be built away from the campus, making the use of solar less noticeable. While we do not propose making solar extremely visible at BC, we think that it is important that students can physically identify the connection between the panels and energy use. Brandeis installed solar on the roofs of two buildings in 2010. At the time, the project was one of the largest in the state, and these panels currently produce 10% of the annual energy needed at their sports center (“Campus Sustainability Initiativ