SOLAR ENERGY KIT
MODEL SK-40
Elenco® Electronics, Inc.
150 Carpenter Avenue
Wheeling, IL 60090
(847) 541-3800
Website: www.elenco.com
e-mail: elenco@elenco.com
Elenco Electronics, Inc.
®
Copyright © 2008 by Elenco® Electronics, Inc. All rights reserved.
753149
No part of this book shall be reproduced by any means; electronic, photocopying, or otherwise without written
permission from the publisher.
Parts List
Solar Cell
Angle Stand
Other Uses
Angle Stand
Base
Motor
Fan
Cardboard Figures Plastic Discs
SK-40-P12
SK-40-P17
SK-40-P1
SK-40-P2
Motor Holder Motor Holder
Base
SK-40-P3
Music Box
SK-40-P4
Light Bulb
SK-40-P5
Jumper Wires
SK-40-P14
SK-40-P7
Wrench
SK-40-P6
SK-40-P8
SK-40-P13
SK-40-P9
SK-40-P10
SK-40-P11
SK-40-P18
SK-40-P15
SK-40-P19
SK-40-P16
SK-40-P20
Ë
»
Radio
Calculator
The Solar World
Solar power: With energy costs and pollution rising, the limitless supply of pollutionfree solar energy will have an ever-increasing role in meeting our world’s energy needs.
Since the sun will always be bright, solar energy will always be available. Solar panels
are quiet, clean, and will last for years since they don’t have any moving parts that can
wear out. Although electricity produced from solar panels is still several times as
expensive as electricity produced by normal energy sources, that is changing as solar
panels become less expensive and more efficient. Scientists are constantly
experimenting with new ways to capture the energy radiated from our sun. More and
more products are being developed that use solar panels as their power source.
Sun power:
The sun
produces heat and light on an
immense
scale,
by
transforming Hydrogen gas
into Helium gas.
This
“transformation”
is
a
thermonuclear
reaction,
similar to the explosion of a
Hydrogen bomb. The earth is
protected from most of this
heat and radiation by being so
far away, and by its
atmosphere. But even here
the sun still has power, since
it can spin the motor on your
kit and give you sunburn on a
hot day.
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–
–
+
9
Battery Charger
Cassette Player
®
Another Elenco Kit to Build
Elenco® Snap Circuits® Jr.
Model SC-100
with over 100 projects
Models SC-100 and SC-100R contain
over 30 parts to introduce students at the
elementary level to the world of electricity
and electronics. Build over 100 projects
from the easy-to-follow color manual by
simply snapping all the parts in place. No
tools needed. The student will learn about
resistors, capacitors, motors, batteries,
series/parallel circuits, and much more.
Figure 1
Requires two (2) “AA” batteries.
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Spinning Disc
There are four disc sizes along with some cardboard figures. Cut the figures out and
attach them to the discs using double-sided tape. Connect the disc to the motor then
place the solar panel facing the sunlight directly. You can vary the speed by adjusting
the amount of sunlight hitting the solar panel.
Disc
Birds
Disc
Fan
Planes
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Nearly all of the energy in any form on the
surface of the earth originally came from
the sun. Plants get energy for growth from
the sun using a process called photosynthesis. People and animals get energy
for growth by eating plants (and other
animals). Fossil fuels such as oil and coal
that power most of our society are the
decayed remains of plants from long ago.
These fuels exist in large but limited
quantity, and are rapidly being consumed.
Born in the space program: The solar
panel is a photovoltaic cell, with photo
meaning light and voltaic meaning that it
produces electricity. Photovoltaic cells
were first developed for the space program,
to recharge batteries and power various
systems in spacecraft and satellites.
Although they were expensive, they saved
money because heavier batteries or other
fuel sources did not have to be launched
into earth’s orbit on very expensive rockets.
The sun’s brightness is reduced when it
passes through the earth’s atmosphere, so
solar cells are more efficient in space.
Solar cells are used to power most
satellites because they are lightweight and
never wear out (sending a serviceman to
do maintenance on a satellite is extremely
expensive). Over the years manufacturing
processes for photovoltaic cells have
improved and reduced costs, and now they
are used in many common products on
earth such as calculators, and often charge
batteries in industrial applications. It is
likely that a large portion of America’s
electricity will be produced from solar cells
by the end of this century.
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Figure 2
Solar Cell on
a Satellite
Figure 3
How your solar panel works: Your solar panel is made from silicon, like the transistors
and microprocessor used throughout the electronics industry. Silicon is easy to find,
since ordinary sand contains mostly silicon.
The silicon is refined into two layers of very pure crystal, but tiny amounts of different
minerals (such as Boron and Phosphorus) are added to give one side a positive
electrical charge and the other side a negative charge. These opposite charges cancel
each other out, producing a neutral cell. However when sunlight shines on the silicon
crystal, charged particles in the light unbalance the cell and create an electrical charge
across it (called a voltage). By connecting wires to the positive and negative layers
this voltage will make a flow of electrical charge, called an electric current.
Solar Motor
Power requirement: 1.5V @ 300mA.
Each row of cells are 1.5V 100mA, so 3 rows of cells are
needed to be connected in parallel.
Formula: I total = 3 rows of cells x 100mA = 300mA.
To assemble your Solar Motor, follow these steps:
Step 1
Step 2
1 2 3
Insert motor
into motor
holder
Screw & nut
Negative
Silicon
Current Flow
Direction
Sunlight
(photons)
1. Attach jumper wires across terminals #1 - #3 & #2 - #4.
2. Attach jumper wires across terminals #3 - #5 & #4 - #6.
3. Attach the motor wires to terminals #1 & #2 and Loosen screw on the motor holder, insert the motor
tighten the nuts.
and then tighten the screw.
Negative
Contact
Positive
Contact
Step 3
Step 4
Press the motor shaft into the hole on the fan.
Insert the the plastic post into the base key hole and
tighten by twisting it 90 degrees.
Barrier Layer
Positive
Silicon
Electrons
Figure 4
Solar cells operate best when bright sunlight is available at all times. Unfortunately,
most areas of the United States only get about 4-5 hours of sunlight per day on average.
The electricity needs of people vary throughout the day, whether or not the sun is
shining. Because of this, most solar cell arrays are used to charge rechargeable
batteries. The batteries provide for people’s electricity needs throughout the day, and
are recharged whenever the sun shines. Solar power is often used in remote desert
areas, because it is too expensive to build electricity distribution networks to them.
Place the solar panel facing the sunlight directly and the fan will spin. To reverse the
rotation, switch the position of the motor wire connections to the solar panel.
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If there is no sunlight, place the panels approximately five inches from a 100W light.
Caution; not more than three minutes as the heat may melt the plastic frame.
Solar Music Player
Using Solar Electricity
Power requirement: 4.5V @ 100mA
There is no limit to the amount electricity you can produce from sunlight. The more cells
you use, the more power you get.
Formula:
4.5V
= 3 rows of cells
Each row of cell 1.5V
To increase the voltage, connect the cells in series from the negative side to the positive side
as shown in Figures 6-11. Although the voltage (E) increases the current (Ι) remains constant.
To assemble your Solar Music Player, follow these steps:
The formula for cells in series is as follows:
Step 2
Step 1
E Total = E1+E2+E3 e.g: (E1)1.5V+(E2) 1.5V+(E3)1.5V = 4.5V
1 2 3 4 5 6
I Total = I1+I2+I3 current (I) remains constant = 100mA
Angle stand
Slide into
place in
direction
of arrow
1. Attach jumper wires across terminals 2-3 & 4-5.
Base
2. Attach the music player’s negative wire to
terminal #1 and the positive lead (+) lead to #6. Slide the angle stand onto the base as shown.
Step 3
Step 4
Tighten the two screws enough so you can adjust Slide the stand into the slot on the solar panel. To
the angle position if necessary.
release the stand, pull up the locking tab as shown.
Place the solar panel facing the sunlight directly and the music should play. If there is
no sunlight, place the panels approximately five inches from a 100W light.
Caution: No more than three minutes as the heat may melt the plastic frame.
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Figure 5 Figure 6
Figure 7
Figure 8
E1
E2 (E1 + E2)
E3 (E1 + E2 + E3)
1.5V 100mA connection
(Figure 6).
3V 100mA series circuit.
4.5V 100mA series circuit.
Figure 10
Figure 11
Figure 9
Terminals #1 & #2 are the
output.
Terminal #2 connected to
#3. Terminals #1 & #4 are
the output.
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Terminal #2 connected to
#3, terminal #4 connected
to #5. Terminals #1 & #6 are
the output.
To increase the current (I), connect the cells in parallel, connecting the positive point
to the positive point, negative point connected to the negative point as shown. Although
the current (I) increases, the voltage (V) remains constant.
The formula for cells in parallel is as follows:
I Total = I1+I2+I3 e.g: (I1)100mA+ (I2) 100mA + (I3)100mA = 300mA
E Total = E1+E2+E3 – The voltage (E) remains constant at 1.5V
Caring for your solar panel: Your solar panel will never wear out and could spin the
motor forever if sunlight were always shining on it. But the motor itself would wear out,
since it has moving parts that rub against each other. The solar panel may break if
you drop or smash it. Use a soft cloth and glass cleaner to keep dust off the panel,
since dust would reduce the brightness of light shining on it.
Future of solar power: We at Elenco® Electronics believe solar power will have an
important role in meeting America’s electricity needs of the 21st century. We think it is
important to educate everyone about the environmental advantages of solar energy
instead of pollution-causing fuels like oil and uranium. We hope you enjoyed building
this kit, please contact us if you have any questions about it.
Light Bulb
Power requirement: 1.5V @ 300mA
Each row of cells are 1.5V 100mA, so 3 rows of cells
are needed to be connected in parallel.
Formula: I total = 3 rows of cells x 100mA = 300mA.
To assemble your Light Bulb, follow these steps:
Figure 12
Figure 13
Figure 14
I1
I2 (I1 + I2)
I3 (I1 + I2 + I3)
1.5V 100mA connection.
1.5V 200mA parallel circuit.
1.5V 300mA parallel circuit.
Step 1
1. Attach jumper wires across
terminals #1 - #3 & #2 - #4.
1 2 3 4 5 6
2. Attach jumper wires across
terminals #3 - #5 & #4 - #6.
3. Attach the light bulb to terminal #1
& #6 and tighten the nuts.
Figure 15
Terminals #1 & #2 are the
output.
Figure 16
Figure 17
Terminal #2 connected to #4,
#1 connected to #3.
Terminals #1 & #4 are the
output.
Terminal #2 connected to
#4, #1 connected to #3, #4
connected to #6, #3
connected to #5. Terminals
#1 & #4 are the output.
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It’s best to do this project using a lamp instead of the sun.
Place the panels approximately five inches from a 100W light and the bulb lights.
Caution: No more than three minutes as the heat may melt the plastic frame.
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