1. Usos y Aplicacions de las
Energias Renovables
Por Richard Komp
Maine Solar Energy Association

2. MAINE

3. Winter in
Maine

4. Peru

5. Finding true north by using the shadow
of a pole. This also let us find solar noon.

6. Building the
sunspace
Fastening the
wood to thewood to the
adobe wall

7. The finished sunspace

8. The Sunspace from
the loft bedroom

9. Huaytapallana Glacier

10. Solar water pump for irrigation in Peru
installed by Carolina Barreto of U Mass - Lowell

11. Solar microdrip
irrigation in Peru

12. Three finished solar cookers in Peru
Nimia from the Grupo Fenix taught
the course.

13. The woman’s Solar Center in Totogalpa, Nicaragua won
the UN SEED Award

14. Solar Thermal Systems
Solar cookers in Nicaragua

15. Installing a wind generator to
go with a PV system in Maine

17. Mulukuku
Hospital

18. Two 50 watt modules on left made in Nicaragua and brought to Haiti to
power the tools needed to make the three 35 watt modules on the right

19. SIMPLIFIED METHOD OF ENCAPSULATING FRAGILE PV CELLS FOR COTTAGE
INDUSTRY PRODUCTION OF PHOTOVOLTAIC MODULES
Richard Komp, John Burke Marco Antonio Perez, Mauro Perez
Maine Solar Energy Association Grupo Fenix – Nicaragua
Susan Kinne Jean Ronel Noel, Alex Georges
Universidad Nacional de Ingenieria Enersa - Citi de Soleil, Haiti
Nicaragua
Pedro Sanchez – Solartec Lima, Peru
Photo – Grid Intertie system
Bamako, Mali, West Africa, May 2010

20. Soldering a string of PV cells to
make a 60 watt photovoltaic module
Photo - Gisenyi, Rwanda
November 2009

21. Nomads in Nigeria
September 2010

22. Cutting PV cells using a diamond
cutting wheel without the motor tool
Photo – Mysore, India
December2007

23. Testing the strings of PV cells in the sun
before encapsulation
Photo – Peru
August 2009

24. Building the cushion
for encapsulating the
thin Evergreen Solar
cells.
The first layer is a sheet
of polyethylene plastic,
then six layers of news-then six layers of news-
print are laid down.
Finally a second layer of
the polyethylene sheet
is put down as a release
layer, since the liquid
Sylgard 184 will not stick
to polyethylene after it
has cured.
Photo – Peru
August 2009

25. Laying the soldered PV cells down on the cushion
Photo - Haiti – March 2006

26. Mixing the silicone with its catalyst
Photo-Rwanda
April 2009

27. Spreading the 400 ml of Sylgard onto the PV cells
Photo – Peru
August 2009

28. Laying the 3 mm glass sheet onto the PV cells
after spreading the liquid silicone
Photo – Mysore,
India
December2007

29. Low-tech laminating machine for a 60 watt PV module
Photo - Haiti - March 2006

30. Laminating a water pump module
Niger – September 2010

31. Another laminating machine Photo –Peru
August 2009

32. Testing the module after
encapsulation
Photo- Miskito
Coast
Nicaragua
February 2007

33. Installing the extruded aluminum frame on the module
The backing sheet is from the vinyl plastic sign used to
advertize the solar course in Peru. August 2009

34. UNTEC group with the first PV module made in Peru

35. The cooperative group testing the first two PV modules ever made in Rwanda
The frames are made from local wood. April 2009

36. Installing the two modules on the workshop roof in
Rwanda April 2009

37. Testing the strings of half cells
to build a 30 watt PV module
Photo- Karachi Pakistan
July 2009

38. Making a 30 watt
PV module
from cut PV
cells
Photo – Mexico
April 2008

39. The PV modules made by the students in India - November 2007
including 60 watt modules, 30 watt modules and cell phone chargers

40. Pondhouse at the ecotourist resort where the Indian students
installed a 120 watt photovoltaic system to make a cottage
independent of the utility grid. The resort also has solar water
heaters and has no heating or air conditioning. December 2007

41. The first installed system in Pakistan: A 360 watt 36 volt system to
run an uninterruptable power system for an upscale home. July 2009

42. A solar water pumping system installed in 2008
in a remote village in Mali, west Africa by the
Afriqpower group. It uses four of the 60 watt PV
modules made by the group.

43. Solar water pump in Niger
September 2010

44. Crossing the Rio Coco in Nicaragua with a PV system in a dugout canoe
The pack mules are swimming – A remote school installation - March 2009

45. Haiti – PV module made
with Evergreen Solar
Ribbon grown
Polycrystalline PV cells

46. Enersa solar street light in Haiti.
After the earthquake, these lights all survived and became
the center of the impromptu refugee camps.

47. Trough type solar thermal concentrator

48. ALTAC PS10 & PS20 solar power towers in Spain plus PV array

49. Making blackberry PV cells

50. Konarka organic semiconductor PV module
After years of research and development , Konarka
is finally selling finished products, using organic
dye molecules in semiconductor polymers.
The module efficiency is 1.7%

51. Making
PV-Thermal
Hybrid
Module

52. Pasamaquoddy PV-Hybrid workshop

53. PV-still - Being
tested in Nicaragua
by Fenix workers.
This device uses
evaporating seaevaporating sea
water to cool the
photovoltaic cells
and makes fresh
water, electricity
and sea salt at the
same time.

54. Cross-section of the PV-still