1.

Definition

The term solar originates from Latin solaris which refers to the Sun (Solar, 2014).
Technology utilising sunlight or solar power to generate electricity is termed photovoltaic
which is a combination of the words photo meaning light and volt which is the unit of
electromotive force (Photovoltaic, 2014). The earliest known use of the word
photovoltaic is in 1849 (Smee, 1849).

2.0

Science of Solar Photovoltaics

Electricity is generated from the movement of electrons through a closed circuit (Halliday,
Resnick & Walker, 2011). The most common material used in solar cells is silicon which is
used in the form of very thin wafers (Johnstone, 2011). Photons in sunlight bombard the
silicon wafer and cause electrons to become separated from their orbits around the atomic
nuclei (Johnstone, 2011). The silicon wafer is coated similar to a sandwich with the top layer
having an abundance of electrons and the bottom layer lacking electrons (Johnstone, 2011).
This difference in electron presence creates an electric field which electrons cannot pass
through (Johnstone, 2011). Thus, the free moving electrons can only move up and away via
metal contacts which creates electricity in a closed circuit (Johnstone, 2011). Figure 1 shows
a cross section of a solar cell.

Figure 1. Cross-section of a solar cell (HowStuffWorks, 2006).

Glass is used to protect the solar cell from damage and it is coated with a nonreflective coating to ensure a maximum efficiency of the system. Solar cells do not contain
moving parts which makes them especially durable to exposure from all types of weather.
Solar cell systems are rated in peak kilowatts (kWp) which is defined as the amount of
electrical power a system is expected to deliver with the sun directly overhead on a clear day
(Parida, Iniyan & Goic, 2011).

3.0

Feed-in Tariffs scheme (FITs)

The idea for Feed-in Tariffs originated from the German city of Aachen in 1994 (Johnstone,
2011). The Feed-in Tariffs scheme (FITs) for the UK was introduced on 1 April 2010. Under
FITs, the UK government will provide funds for renewable electricity generating technology
which includes the following: Solar photovoltaics (PV); wind turbines; hydroelectricity;
anaerobic digesters; and micro combined heat and power (CHP) (Energy Saving Trust, 2014).
The UKs Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) makes decisions regarding
FITs based on government policy. The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem)
administers day-to-day operation of FITs.
On 1 December 2012, the Feed-in Tariffs Order 2012 replaced the Feed-in Tariffs
Order 2010 which introduced new benefits for communities and schools which intend to
commission or have commissioned a PV installation (UK DECC, 2012). Schools with PV
installations not exceeding 50 kW declared net capacity (DNC) will have their tariffs
guaranteed and a relaxation in the minimum energy requirements (UK Ofgem, 2013). A
simple 25 kWp solar PV system installed in a school would generate an annual income of
3,435 according to current tariff rates (UK DECC, 2014a).

4.0

Development of Solar Power in the UK

The energy crisis of the 1970s was a motivation for western countries, including the UK, to
find alternative sources of energy (Smith, Kern, Raven & Verhees, 2014). In 1974, the then
Department of Energy started a UK renewable energy programme. However, desk studies by
the Energy Technology Support Unit (ETSU) concluded that solar energy was not relevant in
the UK at the time (Smith et al., 2014). The initial assessment made by the ETSU was to set
the slow pace of PV development in the country for decades to come.
Two further events in UK history also affected PV growth in the country. The first
was the UK miners strike of 1984 which reduced the role of coal in the production of UKs
electricity (Jeavans, 2004). The second was the privatisation of gas and electricity utilities in
the 1990s which favoured gas-fired electricity generation and reduced research on renewable
sources of energy (Surrey, 1996). Both events preoccupied the UK government and did not
create space for consideration of PV development at the time.
A turning point for PV adoption in the UK came with the European Commission (EC)
THERMIE programme of the 1990s which encouraged adoption of PV technology in the UK
(Yordi et al., 1997). Some of the earliest PV projects in the UK are shown in Table 1.

Table 1. Pioneering PV projects in the UK (Smith et al., 2014).

Project (Year)

Rating

Description

Source

Marchwood (1984)

30 kWp

First PV installation

Scott (1984)

connected to UK grid
Oxford Solar House

4 kWp

(1995)

Fully integrated PV

Fuentes, Dichler & Roaf

roof on domestic

(1996)

property and connected

to UK grid
Northumbria

40 kWp

University (1995)

First PV integrated

CADDET Renewable

faade. Largest

Energy (1998)

installation in the UK at
the time
Doxford Solar Office

73 kWp

(1998)

First building integrated Yudelson (2009)

with PV with the largest
faade of the time

Fords Bridgend

94.5 kWp

First car manufacturing

manufacturing plant

plant to integrate PV

(1998)

systems

Ford Motor Company (2014)

The first major government-supported initiative to bring full-scale solar electricity to

schools and colleges throughout the UK was SCOLAR which ran from 1998 to 2000.
Following this, the Major PV Demonstration Programme (MDP) was introduced in 2002. The
MDP was shut down in 2005, but a new Low Carbon Building Programme (LCBP) in 2006
took its place. Specifically, LCBP Phase 2 (LCBP-2) was targeted towards non-profit
organisations such as schools (UK DECC, 2011). FITs is currently the main funding
programme for renewable energy generation and has replaced LCBP after ending in 2010. A
timeline of UK government sponsored programmes for PV adoption is shown in Table 2.

Table 2. Timeline of PV programmes funded by the UK government (Smith et al., 2014).

Year

Programme Name

Funding Provided

Source

1998-2000

SCOLAR Programme

1 million

Wolfe & Conibeer (1998)

2000-2006

PV Field Trials

9.4 million

UK DTI (2006)

31 million

Smith (2014)

Low Carbon

13.4 million

UK DECC (2011)

Buildings Programme

(For PV only)

Feed-in Tariff Scheme

36 million

Programme
2002-2006

Major Photovoltaics
Demonstration
Programme

2006-2010

2010-Present

(as of 2011)

Energy Saving Trust (2014)

5.0

Solar Power in UK Schools

Newman Catholic College, formerly Cardinal Hinsley School, in London was the first school
in the UK to receive funding for a PV system under SCOLAR (Brent, 1998; From Sun and
Stars, 1998). The first UK school to receive a PV installation under LCBP-2 was Holway
Park school in Taunton (Plug Into the Sun, 2014). Completed in 2007, the installation of the
PV panels provides an output of 3.2 kWp for powering school facilities (Plug Into the Sun,
2014). Bristol City Council has organised the largest solar project in the UK to date with 35
schools receiving PV installations which produce 550 kWp collectively (Whitlock, 2012).
Starting in 2014, the Department of Education is actively encouraging 22,000 schools across
the UK to reduce energy expenditure in order to achieve 15% renewable energy by 2020 (UK
DECC, 2014b).

6.0

Solar Power Potential in the UK

Global Horizontal Irradiation (GHI) is the total amount of shortwave radiation incident on a
horizontal surface and is the most parameter for evaluation of solar energy potential of a
particular region (McEvoy, Markvart & Castaner; 1983). Figure 2 shows the distribution of
GHI across the whole of the UK. The school under study is located in an area with a GHI of
between 1000 and 1100 kWh/m2.

Figure 2. GHI distribution of the United Kingdom (GeoModel Solar, 2014).

7.0

Orientation of School Building

The optimum orientation for PV systems north of the equator is due south and tilted at an
angle of 15 degrees higher than the site latitude (Eiffert & Kiss, 2000). The main building of
the school is facing west. However, there are multiple pitched roof surfaces which are
orientated south. These surfaces are ideal for installation of PV cells. Figure 3 shows the floor
plan of the school and its orientation.

Figure 3. Orientation of school (Google, 2014; Hertfordshire County Council, 2010).

9

8.0

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