Solar street light

Solar street lights are raised light sources which are powered by photovoltaic panels generally mounted on the lighting structure or integrated in the pole itself. The photovoltaic panels charge a rechargeable battery, which powers a fluorescent or LED lamp during the night. 

Most solar panels turn on and turn off automatically by sensing outdoor light using a light source.Solar streetlights are designed to work throughout the night. Latest designs use wireless technology control for battery management. The street lights using this technology can operate as a network with each light having the capability of performing on or off the network. 

Components 

Solar powered street lights 

Solar street lights consist of 5 main parts: 

Solar Panel 

The solar panel is one of the most important parts of solar street lights, as the solar panel will convert solar energy into electricity. There are 2 types of solar panel: mono-crystalline and poly-crystalline. Conversion rate of mono-crystalline solar panel is much higher than poly-crystalline. 

Lighting Fixture 

LED is usually used as lighting source of modern solar street light, as the LED will provide much higher Lumens with lower energy consumption. The energy consumption of LED fixture is at least 50% lower than HPS fixture which is widely used as lighting source in Traditional street lights. 

Rechargeable Battery 

Battery will store the electricity from solar panel during the day and provide energy to the fixture during night. The life cycle of the battery is very important to the lifetime of the light and the capacity of the battery will affect the backup days of the lights. 

Controller 

Controller is also very important for solar street light. A controller will usually decide to switch on /off charging and lighting. Some modern controllers are programmable so that user can decide the appropriate chance of charging, lighting and dimming. 

Pole 

Strong Poles are necessary to all street lights, especially to solar street lights as there are often components mounted on the top of the pole: fixtures, panels and sometimes batteries. However, in some newer designs, the PV panels and all electronics are integrated in the pole itself. Wind resistance is also a factor. 

Types 

Each street light can have its own photo voltaic panel, independent of other street lights. Alternately, a number of panels can be installed as a central power source on a separate location and supply power to a number of street lights. 

Advantages 

-Solar street lights are independent of the utility grid. Hence, the operation costs are minimized. 

-Solar street lights require much less maintenance compared to conventional street lights. 

-Since external wires are eliminated, risk of accidents is minimized. 

-This is a non polluting source of electricity. 

-Separate parts of solar system can be easily carried to the remote areas 

Disadvantages 

-Initial investment is higher compared to conventional street lights. 

-Snow or dust, combined with moisture can accumulate on horizontal PV-panels and reduce or even stop energy production. 

-Rechargeable batteries will need to be replaced several times over the lifetime of the fixtures adding to the total lifetime cost of the light.