What is the difference between these types of solar panels?

There are some key differences between monocrystalline solar panels and polycrystalline solar panels that can help guide your purchasing decision.

In the past ten years, more and more people across the country have chosen to use green energy and use solar energy at home. In 2008, the US solar panel generated 0.34 GW of electricity. Today, this number has soared to 97.2 GW. This total accounts for about 3% of the country's electricity—enough to power about 18 million homes. During this period, the average cost of purchasing and installing solar panel systems dropped by more than 70%.

Before deciding to purchase and install solar panels, many factors need to be considered. These include cost, location of the house, amount of sunlight received, and so on. Once you are committed to solar energy, you will need to review all the information you need to know about solar panels. However, before purchasing a system, the first decision you need to make is which type of solar panel to install-monocrystalline or polycrystalline.

Both monocrystalline and polycrystalline solar panels are made of silicon. However, the manufacturing process is different, resulting in different efficiency of solar panels. Let's explore the similarities and differences between these two panels.

Monocrystalline solar panels are made from a single silicon ingot. To make an ingot, a pure crystalline silicon rod called a seed crystal is placed in molten silicon. Then slowly pull up and rotate to become a single silicon ingot. The ingot is cut into thin wafers, the surface of which is roughened to refract more sunlight. Then, a layer of phosphorus is added to each wafer. It takes 32 to 96 pure silicon wafers to manufacture each solar panel. The more silicon cells in each panel, the higher the energy output.

Polycrystalline solar panels are sometimes called polycrystalline or polycrystalline solar panels. They are also made of silicon. However, they are not made from a single wafer, but from multiple pieces of silicon. The silicon is melted, then cooled as fragments, and molded together before being cut into panels. The finishing process is the same as the single crystal board.

The cells used for monocrystalline solar panels have square wafers with rounded corners. The result is that the gaps between the cells are very small. Due to the purity of silicon, the solar panel looks very dark. The cells of polycrystalline solar panels are square, without any rounded corners. Because of the way the sun interacts with many crystals, they appear blue.

In order to determine the efficiency of solar panels, the amount of sunlight captured into electricity is measured. The higher the number, the higher the system efficiency. Monocrystalline solar panels have an efficiency range of 15% to 20%, while polycrystalline solar panels have an efficiency range of 13-16%.

The temperature coefficient is the index to measure the operation of solar panels when the temperature is high. For monocrystalline solar panels, the ratio is -0.3% to -0.45% in the Celsius temperature range. This means that for every 1oC/32oF, the efficiency of monocrystalline solar panels will decrease by 0.3-0.45%. For polycrystalline solar panels, the tax rate is -0.5%. The end result is that monocrystalline solar panels generate an average of 20% more power than polycrystalline solar panels.

The electricity generated by solar panels is decreasing or degrading every year. This will affect the service life of the panel. The annual degradation rate of monocrystalline solar panels is 0.3% to 0.5%. Solar panel manufacturers set the tax rate at 0.8% and usually provide a warranty period of 25 to 30 years. However, many systems can be used for 40 years. The degradation degree of polycrystalline solar panels is slightly worse, ranging from 0.3% to 1%, and the service life is about 35 years.

Whether it is a monocrystalline solar panel or a polycrystalline solar panel, 90-95% of the solar panel can be recycled.

The cost of buying and installing solar panels depends on the number of panels you need. Your average energy use, solar panel output, and the amount of sunlight in your home will all affect this decision.

The average cost per watt of monocrystalline solar panels is US$1 to US$1.50. The price of a standard 250-watt panel ranges from $250 to $375. This makes the average cost of purchasing the entire single crystal system range from US$6,000 to US$9,000. The price of polycrystalline solar panels ranges from US$0.90 to US$1 per watt, or US$225 to US$250 per 250-watt panel. This results in an average system cost of polycrystalline panels ranging from US$5,400 to US$6,000. Due to the method of producing monocrystalline ingots, monocrystalline solar panels cost more.

Let your home know the latest automation, security, utilities, networks, etc.

Although choosing monocrystalline solar panels or polycrystalline solar panels has advantages, the advantage lies in monocrystalline solar panels. These panels rank higher in terms of efficiency, temperature coefficient and longevity. However, these advantages come at a price, because the price of a monocrystalline solar panel system can be thousands of dollars higher than a polycrystalline system. However, in this case there is only a winner. Those who don't want to spend extra cost on monocrystalline solar panels can still enjoy the benefits of green energy and the potential to reduce electricity bills by using polycrystalline solar panel systems.