Solar cell energy is the single most pressing issue facing humanity, with a more technologically advanced society requiring better energy resources. This book discusses technologies broadly, depending on how they capture and distribute solar energy or convert it into solar power. The major areas covered in this book are: • The theory of solar cells, which explains the conversion of light energy in photons into electric current. The theoretical studies are practical because they predict the fundamental limits of a solar cell. • The design and development of thin-film technology-based solar cells. • State of the art for bulk material applied for solar cells based on crystalline silicon (c-Si), also known as “solar grade silicon,” and emerging photovoltaics.

An Introduction to Solar Radiation is an introductory text on solar radiation, with emphasis on the methods of calculation for determining the amount of solar radiation incident on a surface on the earth. Topics covered include the astronomical relationship between the sun and the earth; thermal radiation; the solar constant and its spectral distribution; and extraterrestrial solar irradiation. This book is comprised of 12 chapters and begins with an overview of the trigonometric relationships between the sun-earth line and the position of an inclined surface, followed by a discussion on the characteristics of blackbody radiation. The next chapter focuses on the solar constant and its spectral distribution, paying particular attention to extraterrestrial solar spectral irradiance and the sun's blackbody temperature. Subsequent chapters explore extraterrestrial and radiation incident on inclined planes; the optics of a cloudless-sky atmosphere; solar spectral radiation and total (broadband) radiation under cloudless skies; and solar radiation arriving at horizontal surfaces on the earth through cloudy skies. The ground albedo and its spectral and angular variation are also described, along with insolation on inclined surfaces. The last chapter is devoted to instruments for measuring solar radiation, including pyrheliometers and pyranometers. This monograph will serve as a useful guide for energy analysts, designers of thermal devices, architects and engineers, agronomists, and hydrologists as well as senior graduate students.

Accurate solar radiation knowledge and its characterization on the Earth’s surface are of high interest in many aspects of environmental and engineering sciences. Modeling of solar irradiance from satellite imagery has become the most widely used method for retrieving solar irradiance information under total sky conditions, particularly in the solar energy community. Solar radiation modeling, forecasting, and characterization continue to be broad areas of study, research, and development in the scientific community. This Special Issue contains a small sample of the current activities in this field. Both the environmental and climatology community, as the solar energy world, share a great interest in improving modeling tools and capabilities for obtaining more reliable and accurate knowledge of solar irradiance components worldwide. The work presented in this Special Issue also remarks on the significant role that remote sensing technologies play in retrieving and forecasting solar radiation information.

Solar radiation data is important for a wide range of applications, e.g. in engineering, agriculture, health sector, and in many fields of the natural sciences. A few examples showing the diversity of applications may include: architecture and building design, e.g. air conditioning and cooling systems; solar heating system design and use; solar power generation; evaporation and irrigation; calculation of water requirements for crops; monitoring plant growth and disease control; skin cancer research.

The growing problem of changing environmental conditions caused by climate destabilization is well recognized as one of the defining issues of our time. The root problem is greenhouse gas emissions, and the fundamental solution is curbing those emissions. Climate geoengineering has often been considered to be a "last-ditch" response to climate change, to be used only if climate change damage should produce extreme hardship. Although the likelihood of eventually needing to resort to these efforts grows with every year of inaction on emissions control, there is a lack of information on these ways of potentially intervening in the climate system. As one of a two-book report, this volume of Climate Intervention discusses albedo modification - changing the fraction of incoming solar radiation that reaches the surface. This approach would deliberately modify the energy budget of Earth to produce a cooling designed to compensate for some of the effects of warming associated with greenhouse gas increases. The prospect of large-scale albedo modification raises political and governance issues at national and global levels, as well as ethical concerns. Climate Intervention: Reflecting Sunlight to Cool Earth discusses some of the social, political, and legal issues surrounding these proposed techniques. It is far easier to modify Earth's albedo than to determine whether it should be done or what the consequences might be of such an action. One serious concern is that such an action could be unilaterally undertaken by a small nation or smaller entity for its own benefit without international sanction and regardless of international consequences. Transparency in discussing this subject is critical. In the spirit of that transparency, Climate Intervention: Reflecting Sunlight to Cool Earth was based on peer-reviewed literature and the judgments of the authoring committee; no new research was done as part of this study and all data and information used are from entirely open sources. By helping to bring light to this topic area, this book will help leaders to be far more knowledgeable about the consequences of albedo modification approaches before they face a decision whether or not to use them.

Energy usage and consumption continue to rise globally each year, with the most efficient and cost-effective energy sources causing huge impacts to the environment. In an effort to mitigate harmful effects to the environment, implementing clean energy resources and utilizing green energy management strategies have become worldwide initiatives, with many countries from all regions quickly becoming leaders in renewable energy usage. Still, not every energy resource is without flaws. Researchers must develop effective and low-cost strategies for clean energy in order to find the balance between production and consumption. The Research Anthology on Clean Energy Management and Solutions provides in-depth research that explores strategies and techniques used in the energy production field to optimize energy efficiency in order to maintain clean and safe use while delivering ample energy coverage. The anthology also seeks solutions to energy that have not yet been optimized or are still produced in a way that is harmful to the environment. Covering topics such as hydrogen fuel cells, renewable energy, solar power, solar systems, cost savings, and climate protection, this text is essential for electrical engineers, nuclear engineers, environmentalists, managers, policymakers, government officials, professionals in the energy industry, researchers, academicians, and students looking for the latest research on clean energy management.