Efficiency Of Monocrystalline And Polycrystalline Solar Panels

The majority of solar panels deployed today are made from either monocrystalline or polycrystalline solar cells.

Efficiency of monocrystalline and polycrystalline solar panels.

Polycrystalline refers to the makeup of the solar cells in each type of panel. Polycrystalline panels have about 13 to 16 efficiency while monocrystalline panels have an efficiency rate of anywhere from 15 to 20. Roof space the higher the efficiency of the panel the less of them you will need to make up an entire system. For instance a polycrystalline 100 watt solar panel can give you efficiency at the rate of 17 maximum while its monocrystalline counterpart at the same rating can deliver up to 19.

The monocrystalline panels typically have an efficiency of between 18 22 while polycrystalline panels achieve between 15 17 efficiency. Polycrystalline solar panels are also referred to as multi crystalline or many crystal silicon. There is a third type of solar technology called thin film panels which are usually deployed for large scale utility projects and some specialty applications. This makes monocrystalline solar panels suitable for places where there is a space crunch and more.

Monocrystalline panel efficiencies can range from 17 to 22. Monocrystalline solar panels usually have the highest efficiency and power capacity out of all types of solar panels. The efficiency of polycrystalline solar panels is somewhat lower but the benefit for customers is that this option is more affordable. The price of a monocrystalline panel ranges from 200 to 300 which mainly depends on the quality and size of a solar panel.

Monocrystalline panels are more power efficient than the polycrystalline ones due to their structural difference. The highest efficiency solar panels on the market today can reach almost 23 percent efficiency. You would need a much larger array of polycrystalline panels to produce the same amount of energy than if you used monocrystalline which may not work for households with limited roof space. Because there are many crystals in each cell there is less freedom for the electrons to move.

As a result polycrystalline solar panels have lower efficiency ratings than monocrystalline panels. In addition when you seek polycrystalline solar panels for sale the sellers may highlight the blue hue of these panels compared to the monocrystalline panels black hue.