Customer Reviews

Solar Electricity, 2nd Edition

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is one of the best I have read on the subject of photovoltaic (PV) systems. It has a good balance between all areas of PV system design. Most books with this level of technical content are too skewed toward semiconductor physics and neglect system-level issues. This one covers everything from PV devices (solar cells) to power converters to batteries to system design, and includes useful sections on justification for PV, system application examples, and environmental impacts. The organization and flow are clear and logical. The only problems are some unclear typesetting, exclusion of background on some key equations (references to the literature are included, though), and a little bit of non-standard notation (i.e. G is used for irradiation, not irradiance). Summary: I highly recommend this book for technically literate readers interested in PV systems.

If you're looking for a start book on Photovoltaics (PV),this is the one to start with. Dr. Markvart takes you from the principle of solar irradiation, to complete design of a PV generator. He explains himself very easily when talking about solar cell's operation and manufacturing process. When he arrives to PV System Engineering, he shows you exactly all the steps you have to follow for sizing a proper PV system. IF what you're looking for is complete design procedures for PV system, including charge controllers, inverters, battery chargers, this is a good start, but will not help much for designing purpouses. For this you should look for Photovoltaic System Engineering by Dr. Roger Messenger. Another good book by Markvart is Practical PV Handbook; together with Solar Electricity, is a great pack for designers or scientifics working with PV systems.

great book if your looking for well-rounded info about photovoltaics, fairly up to date too.

This book was a required textbook for a solar energy class that I took. Normally, I would sell a book after taking a class, but this one I decided to keep because it has a lot of good information on photovoltaics and how they work, on a very technical level, without being too dry and boring. It is a relatively easy read, considering that it is technical information.

The book does NOT cover any solar thermal applications. You will need to find this information elsewhere.

I was promised shipping information when I purchased the book. I spent additional money to upgrade the delivery for faster delivery and a tracking number. I never did get a tracking number. The supplier was slow to respond to my question on shipping. I received an answer as to whether the book was shipped two days after the book arrived.