Solar Fun!!How To Make A Solar Panel With CD? Step By Step Guide!!

There are so many interests among general people that they keen to know how to make a solar panel with CD?

Is it just a myth to make a solar panels with CD?

Is it still possible yet or not?

By reading throughout the whole article, you will find out the step by step guide of making solar panels with CD.

Don’t be confused at all & looking around in other sources here in this write up you will get all the details of how to make a solar panels with CD?

It is nifty little fun idea to repurpose the old unwanted CDs, and It is an easy venture to witness to observe the futuristic phenomenon of solar power as well. 

After reading this article, you will know how it is possible to build your solar panels with CD. This particular piece will tell you how to make homemade solar panels with CD to produce secondary usefulness as well.

You’re wondering, right? Let’s read & explore-

Lets deep dive!!

Intro of How to make a solar panels with CD?

Have you ever wondered how the calculator in your pocket utilizing a solar panel array is?

Lights in your garden with a solar-powered generator, how exactly does it work?

How about a nifty little fun idea to repurpose the old unwanted CDs? It is an easy venture to witness to observe the futuristic phenomenon of solar power as well.

Why threaten our electricity supply by relying significantly on coal and oil?

The sun has about 5 billion years to burn to feed us endless fuel.

We have unlimited renewable energy sources utilization without depleting it and emitting pollutants & greenhouse gasses from the sun.

The solar panels turn the energy from this gigantic power station into a clean and convenient electricity supply.

You can recycle the thrown away old CDs to learn more about the potential energy of the sun. So we’ll discuss “how to make a solar panel with CD?” in this article.

The era of optical storage media with CD, DVD, or Blue-ray is in the end. You can now conveniently store and manage an enormous amount of digital content in the cloud and high-speed internet.

You will know how it is possible to build your solar panels with CD after reading this article.
This particular piece will tell you how to make homemade solar panels with CD to produce secondary usefulness.

You’re wondering, right?

How to make a solar panel with CD?

You can repurpose the plain old CDs to the fullest extent. You can take advantage of their distinctively shiny surfaces to build a solar heating panel or a solar power tower (heliostats).

Follow the demonstration later for a complete guide to make a solar panel with CD to produce your solar power.
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Although, this energy won’t power your home electronic appliances. The article is not about a traditional solar panel you can expect to build.

And that raises the question, how will you benefit from this endeavor?

Who benefits from “make a solar panel with CD” projects?

Suppose the world’s temperatures increase to 1.5°C. In that case, we will lose 70 – 90 % of coral reefs, according to a report by IPCC.  [I]

As climate change continues to threaten our environment, renewable energy deployment is becoming quite commonplace.

But what is the best form of renewable energy?

Green technologies substantially depend on the sun directly or indirectly. The sun’s rays’ conversion through photovoltaic cells or reflective mirrors makes solar power the most significant contributor to renewable energy.

The demonstration of making a Solar Thermal Panel with CD should benefit us. It should improve our understanding of how you can utilize the sun to produce heat energy and heal through snowy days. 

While it is a unique method to produce heat, it might not help make power.

The practical applications (included but not limited to) of this project are

• Educating yourself

Whether you are a grown-up or a child, you can educate yourself through such a small-scale solar project without wasting a lot of time, money, or energy.  You can observe the power of the sun’s rays first-hand.

• Instant gratification

A relatively lighter project will still be brighter if you can get an immediate result of your effort.

• Off-grid applications

Suppose your power sources are cut or you’re away from the power grid. In that case, this endeavor will prepare you to adapt to off-grid applications. You can efficiently progress your real-life solar power project. You will be able to adapt to survive and build your solar system.

How do you generate solar energy with a CD?

• Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels are relatively ineffective at transforming a lot of energy from the sun. So, what is the best material to make a solar panel more efficient?

– The solar photovoltaic (PV) cells are more efficient at absorbing photons if you can imprint quasi-random nanostructures (non-smooth) on the solar cells. Even though it looks smooth, a Blu-ray disc has ‘islands’ and ‘pits.’ This surface pattern gives them the ability for light-trapping. A Blu-ray-patterned solar panel can absorb 21.8 % more lights comparing to a non-patterned solar panel. [II]

– Unlike the CDs and DVDs, the Blu-ray discs have a higher capacity, transfer rate, and ability to improve solar PV panels’ efficiency. The information patterns (imprinted) of Blu-ray discs work so well to concentrate lights. This technique can improve the efficiency of polymer or other types of solar cells.

However, it is pretty costly to construct the molds for fabrication.

Let’s see the processing of such Blu-ray-patterned solar cells below:

 

– Before they are available commercially, let’s repurpose the stacks of CD, DVD, or Blue-ray disc to the DIY solar thermal panel.

 

How can I make a simple solar panel at home with a CD?: DIY Step by step Guide of Making simple solar panel with cd-

The traditional solar photovoltaic panel produces electrical power through the photovoltaic process (convert sun’s rays into useable energy).

In comparison, the solar thermal panel reflects the sun’s rays to heat a particular object, fluid, or area.

Although they do not convert the sun’s rays into electricity, they are crucial to the solar platform.

You do not require battery or inverter integration with the solar panels.

The process is less sophisticated than that of a grid-connected system. The technology is not any less valuable than that of the photovoltaic generation as well.

Follow the procedures below to know how do you make a solar panel CD: in only six steps (DIY solar thermal panel)

What materials are used to make a solar panel CD?

Before we start our demonstration on how to make a solar panel with household items, it is essential to gather the materials beforehand.

1. CDs
2. Cardboards
3. Utility knife
4. Glue
5. Measuring tape
6. Maskingtape
7. Paintspray
8. S hooks
9. Drop cloth
10. Pencil

# How to make a solar energy project: 6 steps in making solar cells with CD-

1st step for making a solar panel with CD : Measure and Cut

• At first, measure the length and the width of a window south-facing or otherwise. Add 4/8 inches to the length and width as well. For instance,

Measurements (inches)	Length	Width
Actual	22	36
Required	26	40

 

Now, pick a cardboard piece large enough to shape it with a utility knife according to the required measurements above.

From any unused cardboard, cut few rectangles (4 pieces) of 4-inches width. The rectangles should also be 3/4 of the width of the container.

 

2nd step for making a solar panel with CD : Paint

• Move forward to the next step, spray on any one side of the cardboard, preferably black entirely, as dark colors absorb the highest light energy (heat) from the environment. You can apply a coating material for the best result or an enhanced aesthetics. But you must wait half a day or more to let dry the paint thoroughly before using any other colors.

 

3rd step : Create a Container –

• With the utility knife, cut a 4-inch square from every corner of the rectangle cardboard and tape them up with the masking tape to create a container. The dark section should form the inside of the box.

 

4th step for making a solar panel with CD : Placement

• Insert the CDs into the container in uniform columns& rows from bottom to top of the cardboard with the non-reflective side facing inward.
• Next, use a pencil to locate the midpoint of the CD rows. Cut a hole from both the top and bottom rows of CDs to glue them down over the holes.

 

5th step for making a solar panel with CD : Glue the Rectangles

Take the four rectangles from the first step and glue them inwards of the container to form a maze wall.

Rectangles	1st	2nd	3rd	4th
Position in container	Left  side	Right side	Left side	Right side
Position at CD rows	Bottom row	Center row	Center row	Top row

 

6th step for making a solar panel with CD : Hooking Arrangement

• In the last step, pick a drop cloth piece of overall length to shape it 3 inches longer and wider than the container with a utility knife.

 

• Unfold the cloth over the top gluing the sides of the container. Make holes in the two upper corners of the container to inject the S-hooks. Finally, you can hang the solar thermal panel on the window.

 

Conclusions for make homemade solar panels with CD: Why is solar power the best energy source?

This technological era of YouTubes or iTunes made the CD, DVD & Blue-ray discs outdated relics.

Nevertheless, you can upcycle the obsolete discs to bring them back into existence. You can utilize the shiny sides of old plastic disks to create an electricity-generating solar panel or solar heating thermal panel.

• You can repurpose your old CDs from the pile of useless CDs, DVDs & Blue-ray discs lying around the house or in your backyard!

 

• A hands-on learning experience on “how to make a solar panel with CD?” should enhance your ability to perform a progressive solar project to harness the sun.

Summary : Key takeout

Huge energy requirements in our localities or the off-grid phenomenon paving the way for solar services.

With this non-traditional solar energy project, you can enhance your innovation skill. In just a few steps, you should be able to benefit from the free energy solar. You can produce sufficient energy to heat your room, house, or even the swimming pools with a little bit of creativity. 

So, what can I do with a small solar panel made with CDs?

–        Domestic Solar Thermal System

A practical method to tackle the energy loss is to store the heat in a water tank.

–        Space Efficient

A solar cd panel facing south through the windows results in an efficient project regarding the space requirements.

 

FAQ: How to make solar cell with copper wire, cd, and diodes?

The electrical conductivity of copper is one of the best among the metals. Although, it cannot generate electricity when exposed to just sunlight. Unless, you swing a magnet around a coil of copper wire.

The Zener diodes, however, can produce some measurable voltage when exposed to sunlight.

The diodes are only capable of producing only a couple of millivolts. You can test it with a voltmeter or multimeter.

But it will not essentially run any electronic devices as the current output will be tremendously low and hence the power.

The DIY videos on YouTube to build CD solar panels with copper wire and diodes won’t provide sufficient energy to power any home electronic appliances.

 

References

1. I. “Global Warming of 1.5C”; October 2018, by United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

 

1. “Repurposing Blu-ray movie discs as quasi-random nano imprinting templates for photon management by Alexander J. Smith1, Chen Wang2, Dongning Guo, Cheng Sun &Jiaxing Huang