How to Make Photovoltaic Solar Panels

The photovoltaic effect is the reaction certain substances have when they are struck by sunlight, resulting in an electric current. It is not widely known that not all solar panels use the photovoltaic effect, but any that create electricity do. It is also not widely known that a basic photovoltaic panel can be made in just about any kitchen or garage workshop, using some clean copper sheeting and basic tools.

Things You'll Need

• Clean copper sheeting
• Sheet metal shears
• Hot plate, stove or blow torch
• Tongs
• Plastic scouring pad
• Silvering solution
• Small brush
• Electrical wire
• Pocketknife
• Soldering gun
• Ammeter (optional)
• Voltmeter (optional)

Instructions

1. Examine your copper sheeting for green corrosion. If there is any, it will either need to be cleaned, or that part of the sheet will need to be left unused.

2. Cut a square or rectangle from the copper sheeting with the shears. This can be as large or as small as desired, although anything for demands greater than that of a science project panel should be measured in feet, not inches.

3. 

   Using a gas burner, electric hot plate or even a blowtorch, heat one side of the copper sheeting until it is red hot. Keep it that way for 1-2 minutes. The side that is not being "cooked" will form a coat of black oxide. A small sheet can probably be "cooked" all at once, but a large one will need to be heated one section at a time. Be sure to manipulate the sheet with tongs for safety.

4. Set the sheet aside to thoroughly cool for at least 20 minutes.

5. Use a plastic scouring pad to remove the black oxide layer. This will expose a layer of reddish-pink oxide underneath. Take care to be gentle, and do not use a harsh tool like a metal scraper. The red oxide must remain intact, or the panel will not work.

6. Use a brush to coat the red oxide with silvering solution. This will offer some protection from the elements. Stand and dry the sheet for several hours.

7. 

   Use a pocket knife to strip about an inch of insulation from one end of a roll of electrical wire. Then divide the wire into its negative (black) and positive (red) leads, going several inches down the wiring.

8. 

   Fasten the negative lead onto the silvered/oxide side of the copper sheet using the soldering tool, and then the positive side onto the clean side. This will both attach the leads and do so in a conductive fashion. Where you solder them is not important, just so long as they are soldered somewhere off the edge of the sheet.

9. Connect the panel's wiring to an inverter, battery charge controller or directly to a DC appliance like a light bulb. This may or may not require the wiring to be screwed into a plug adapter first, depending on what the ultimate use for the panel's electricity is.

10. Place the panel into full sunlight. It will start producing electricity in seconds.

References

• Copper-based solar panels
• Copper and Salt Water solar cells

Resources

• Making Silvering Solution