Solar-Powered Charger: Using the prowess of solar

panels to generate battery for Android Smartphones

when a situation perceives the lack of electricity

Estoesta, Alejandra Elize P.

Goopio, Johnielle Beatrice N.

Lucin, Shaina C.
 Solar Panel Charger for Gadgets

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

On April 22, 1970; celebrated the first Earth Day. It was generated to spread awareness about

the support for environmental protection and scientists were then on making the first ever

discoveries of solar energy. A young physicist by the title of “Edmond Becquerel” who was

working in France, began observing and discovering the photovoltaic effect in 1839. This effect

was explained to be a process that produces a voltage or electric current the second it is

exposed to radiant energy or light. Because of this attractive discovery, even a French

mathematician by the name “Augustin Mouchot” was driven to be inspired by the young

physicist’s work. (Elizabeth, C., Lawrence, T.). But if physicist Edmond Becquerel is the one

who creates the effect, who created the first solar panel? Let’s move back in time and dive to

1883, where according to John Perlin, an individual named Charles Fritts became the first to

install a solar cell, found in New York City; rooftop in 1884. It was only made by coating

selenium—a metalloid element intermediate in properties between the metals and the

nonmetals—with a thin layer of gold. According to Fritts himself, the selenium module produced

a current that is continuous, constant, and of considerable force. In easy terms, Charles Fritts is

who first formed and created what was a low impact solar sell, but was still led as the beginning

of the numerous innovations of this application to be entitled a solar panel. Many other

inventors; like Edward Weston in 1888 just to name one, received two patents for solar cells.

While inventor Edward was busy innovating and researching this potential product, a Russian

scientist named “Aleksandr Stolelov” created the first solar cell that was based on another effect

called the photoelectric effect, first observed by a German physicist, “Heinrich Hertz”. In his

research, Hertz discovered that more power was created by ultraviolet light than visible light.

(Elizabeth, C., Lawrence, T.). Russian scientist Aleksandr made the first solar cell connecting to

the photoelectric effect the same year inventor Edward Weston taught about the process of
solar cells. These two are just the very few inventors, scientists and organizations to have

changed the light and form of solar panels. As seen, Solar panels were not originally created as

solar panels right away—they were entitled solar cells, and had to go through many procedures

for it to look what it is now know as it is in this modern era. Back then, they were used for

complex tasks, nowadays—they are used to convert sunlight into power. Solar panels and solar

technology have come a long way, so these patented inventions are proof that the technology is

still improving its efficiency and aesthetics. (Elizabeth, C., Lawrence, T.). But to begin with, how

does the solar panel convert sunlight into power? In 2017, the International Energy Agency

showed that solar had become the world’s fastest-growing source of power – marking the first

time that solar energy’s growth had surpassed that of all other fuels. Forthwith, photovoltaic

power accounts for only five-tenths of one percent of the energy consumed in the United States.

But solar technology is improving and the cost of going solar is dropping rapidly, so the ability to

harness the sun’s abundance of energy is on the rise (US. Sunpower). Solar energy works this

way because each hour produces enough photons that impact the planet to generate enough

solar energy to satisfy the needs of global energy. The solar market today wears a changed

look. From technology, to scale to customers, it has all changed. (Saur, B., November 2022).

The countless number of changes have soon been formed into five categories according to

Saur Bureau; with the shift to higher output modules - the government approval to implement

the second phase of the Production Linked Incentive or PLI Scheme for gigawatt-scale

manufacturing of high efficiency solar PV modules to shift of Indian solar manufactures toward.

Producing high-output modules, the output efficiencies are at the forefront of the change in the

solar industry. Many global players are entering the segment in India. Chinese major Arctech,

through its JV with the Adani Group, Jash Energy, announced its first manufacturing base

dedicated to solar trackers in the country. (Suar, B., November 2022). Despite the fact that

bifacial modules were first invented in the 1980s, it is only now that the solar industry is sitting

up and taking notice of the breakthrough innovation that offers (significantly) more benefits over
monofacial panels. Solar Reliance Industries Ltd, Dr. Omkar Jani, explained why bifacial

modules are naturally beginning to gain popularity, “with the same investment, bifacial modules,

with the incremental sunlight they capture from the back of the panel, deliver efficiency that

matters today. “. (Suar, B., November 2022). For instance, ABB, SMA Solar Technology,

Huawei, Sungrow, and TMEIC are the manufacturers led by foreign in the solar inverter market

in India. While their dominance is still there, Indian firms are now entering the solar inverter

market as well. A few new players in solar manufacturing are looking to build an integrated

facility to produce all PV value chain components, from polysilicon to solar modules. Included

those looking at wafer manufacturing are big private Indian conglomerates such as Reliance

and Jindal India Solar Energy. Even Coal India Limited, one of the world’s largest miners has

announced its plan to invest in power electronics with Jamnagar becoming the largest such hub

in the world. (Suar, B., November 2022). Solar panels have been extended to so many forms of

improvement, that it turns into a spin to have the ability to charge even electronic equipment. In

this modern era, the thing people will never forget about are their devices. Sometimes, it’s even

the first priority of these people. Even if somebody is on the move—out to jog or on a field trip,

it’s the 21st century and nobody knows what the word “impossible” can be nowadays. A charger

is known to be the main key of keeping your electronics alive, but what if solar panels can

alternate that fact too? Well, they certainly can. If turned into solar battery chargers, the modern

era can find an easy way to keep fueling their electronics with batteries without even carrying a

charger needed to be plugged. “Solar battery chargers are devices that extract energy from the

sunlight to produce electricity for charging cell phones, car batteries, laptops, personal fans, and

reading lights.” (SolarSquare, August 2022.). Not only that, but these little applications are

known to be portable and easy to use wherever somebody may be, so long as sunlight is

present. While they all come in different shapes and sizes; forms and color—they all value the

same use, and are mostly at the management to be carried anywhere. Running out of battery is

always a hassle, but if somebody brings such an application, you can still charge your devices
with the assistance of sufficient sunlight. Solar charging works due to how sunlight has photons

that carry enough energy to push the electrons in silicon out of their orbit. When a connection is

established between the two sides with the help of an indirect circuit; such as a solar battery

charger, there is a flow of electrons into the load, and electricity is generated. According to

SolarSquare, “The solar battery chargers do not directly charge the lithium-ion battery in your

iPad or cell phone. Rather, an internal rechargeable battery is usually used. First, the solar

modules are charged, whose charge is then redistributed to your gadget so that there is no

requirement for an external electric source.”. So, to put it in a summary, if somebody were to

charge their device with solar energy, there are still steps to do this task—much as there are

steps if charging with an ordinary charger. A USB cable is needed to be connected to the

charging port of somebody's equipment and flip the said charger so that the solar panels can

face the sky—which is where the sunlight lies. But if solar panels turned into solar battery

chargers also have some sort of hassle, why bother it as an alternative? There are a few

benefits to this. The electricity produced is generated from a clean source of energy. Even if

there is no electricity, you can still charge the appliances through solar energy. (SolarSquare,

August 2022.). As mentioned previously, these usually small applications are easy to hold and

bring anywhere, which is another great factor to consider. Sometimes, the long strings of wires

can turn into a mess if not properly organized, but with solar battery chargers—little wires are

needed. Even if you decide to stay on an island in full avoidance of social interaction and kept in

isolated views, you can still access your electricity so long as there is energy present. They

provide power capacity, the skill of being cost-efficient and are fit to be compatible. All that’s

needed to maintain solar panels—said by BatteryStuff, is to periodically clean out any form of

dirt from these applications. Because these panels are mostly designed to be used outside of a

home or building, nearly all solar panels are waterproof, so water isn’t a problem. Not to mention

the long lifespan of these objects; which is said to be between 3 to 25 years. If taken well cared

of, as well as depending on its type of solar panel—these things can last longer than your
regular charger. (BatteryStuff, August 2022). Usually, a basic charger comes with the cell phone

when it is purchased. A cell phone charger is a device used to recharge the battery in a mobile

phone unit. There are many more different types of cell phone chargers to go for. Included in the

most popular are wall chargers, car chargers, travel chargers, rapid chargers, and instant

chargers. Almost every single owner of a mobile phone may own one or more of these other

types of chargers, related to the situation they are in (Kevin, B. 2022). When buying a cell phone

charger, it is important to understand that just because it works with your brand of phone, it may

not work with your model. Be sure to cross reference the model number on the packaging to

your own phone. In many packages, the connecting portion of the charger to the phone is

outside the rest of the packaging, giving the consumer a chance to test the connection, if they

have their cell phone with them. This is the most foolproof way of making sure you have the

right connection (Kevin, B. 2022). Surely, smartphone production is famous for the various

manufacturers refusing to have a conversation about even the most basic things to bring some

sort of consistency across devices. Here, one may look at the various cables you might need,

and where one is headed as a production (Genesis, R. 2022). MINI-USB Phone Charges,

connector and socket tend to be more robust than the equivalent micro-USB. By the same

token, this is the reason why digital cameras and other devices have continued to use a mini-

USB connector long after it was officially retired. MICRO-USB, In general, the micro-USB

connector is now by far the most commonly used connector for smartphones and tablets. In

time, they started to appear on devices after about 2008. The micro-USB’s soon became the

go-to connector for smartphone manufacturers. Until now, this is the closest the smartphone

world has ever come to having a charging standard (Genesis, R. 2022). USB-C Phone Charger,

Undeniably, USB-C or type C is the future of USB charging in smartphones. Not only is it the

most used nowadays, but it is also an industry-standard connector used to address the need for

a wide range of display, data transmission, and charging applications (bajajfinserv.in). Apple

Chargers, This USB 2.0 cable connects your iPhone, iPad or iPod with Lightning connector to
your computer’s USB port for syncing and charging. Or you can connect to the Apple USB

Power Adapter for convenient charging from a wall outlet (iStudio.com). How quickly your phone

goes from zero to a hundred in terms of battery life depends on both the watts coming from the

charger and the maximum number of watts your phone can take (which you should be able to

find out with a quick web search). The new iPhone 12, for example, can handle up to 20 W. So,

if you buy the official 20-W charger from Apple, it’s going to juice up your iPhone 12 about four

times faster than the official 5-W charger from Apple. (Note too that the 20-W model supports

the bigger iPad tablets, whereas the 5-W model doesn’t, for the reasons the researchers

already explained. This applies to laptop ports as well—the latest MacBook Pros can output 10

watts of power from their Thunderbolt/USB-C ports, which means they beat 5-W chargers but

can’t compete with the 20-W models. That’s assuming your phone can take up to 20 W, by the

way. If it tops out at 10 W, the MacBook Pro and the 20-W charger will restore its battery level at

the same rate (David, N. 2020). Solar mobile charger is a device designed to power cell phones

using solar energy. Like a part of a solar powered device, a solar mobile charger is a device

with a solar panel that stores energy which is used to charge a cell phone when needed. It is a

rechargeable device which needs to be timely charged by keeping it in the sun. They are

portable and easy to use but like any electronic, it has its own pros and cons (Gelco, E. 2022).

While counting the advantages of the solar mobile charger, a major upper hand is that these

devices are light weighted and easily portable. They can be suitable to be carried around in your

bag. Secondly, being solar powered, you don’t need to worry about carrying chargers to charge

these charging devices similar to any power bank. They can be charged anywhere without the

need of any electric outlet. Also, no extra effort needed to be put into charging these devices.

Whenever they are exposed to sunlight the batteries auto-magically start charging. An additional

advantage is that in addition to charging mobile phones, the device can also be used to charge

other devices like tablets, laptops, et al. (Gelco, E. 2022). Every technology has its own cons, a

major downside for the device is that it may not be quite effective in colder regions or where
there is no sunlight. But advancements are being made on daily bases introducing new

technology to cater to the drawback. Hybrid chargers are one such option. However,

considering the larger picture, a solar mobile charger should anyhow be the desired option as

with convenience it also proves to be an eco-friendly solution (Gelco, E. 2022). In strong direct

sunlight the solar panel will fully charge in around three hours and will fully charge a typical

smartphone in around 2 hours. The panel is highly durable but is just 3mm thick. Grommets in

the corners of the panel make it easy to mount and it comes with a nylon case for safe storage.

(Deci, W. 2020). As "smart phones" these days don't even seem to survive a day during

typhoons, this device functions as a power bank to keep your phones charged. Naturally, solar

charging allows it to run continuously. It contains flashlights to keep you and your family

illuminated at night in case of a typhoon or blackouts.

Statement of the Problem

This study entitled: Solar Panel Chargers is aimed to find a way to design a progress of

conserving electricity into something portable and convenient. To be able to create the device

that is accessible to teenagers like students and above is something the researchers would like

to work on.

Specifically, to answer the following questions:

1. What is the expected, average use and/or succeed of use of the application for teenagers

such as students and adults like workers?

a. For design — Would this product catch its success from being displayed in areas in need of

furnish—to appear pleasing to the eye, or an alternative choice for outlets?

b. For entertainment – Would this product only be famous for the users only if they feel like

using it? For instance, would they only toy with it because of how simple it appears; not properly

taking care or using it as one should?

2. What is the expected average success of the application based on?

a. Functionality of buttons or design, specifically in being used for design; in which an individual

would most rather leave the application for display

b. Display of results regarding which age group will use this application more than the

other/rest?

3. Can the soar powered chargers withstand the under extreme conditions such as rain, storms,

and thermal cycling?

a. These speeds do no damage to solar cells. According to a survey from NREL, only 0.1% of

the 50,000 solar energy systems that were build between 2009 and 2013 were either

underperforming or had hail damage. Very severe weather conditions are not an issue for solar

panels.

b. Component failure in solar panels can be attributed to thermal cycling. Solar cells,

connections are some of these parts. While installing solar panels, it’s crucial to consider all the

variables that could affect its effectiveness. Also, it’s critical to maximize output right away.

Hypotheses

ALTERNATIVE

 A portable yet functional way of bringing a source of recharging gadgets that fits in small

storage spaces like bags of common sizes.

 A great way towards turning off energy costs, remove the environment impact of your

home.

 Home solar is more affordable than other forms of solar or energy.

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 Expected to work without the sun.

  Possible for their size to be bigger than should be at maximum expected size, causing

for the product to be unable to fit in storage spaces.

 Home solar panels are not affordable.

Significance of the Study

As time speeds on, many of humanity increases the percentage of the need to

constantly use devices for everyday importance. Along this, many chargers will be at need to

use for charging the devices–not to mention the electricity that these chargers will require.

According to Phantom Energy Load, 75% of electricity is constantly used to power electronics

like devices. It is a lot to consider, and knowing how much this electricity is used every single

day, it would not be surprising to suddenly have all source out. Adding on, electricity will not

always be available no matter where one goes. Power banks and places with a free or either by

payment charging ports for explorers or simply just for those that are traveling may be an

acceptable alternative, however, sometimes both are not obtainable on a person. This is why

this study holds an interest for solar panels; a contraction to where it uses the sun as the source

rather than electricity. According to MIT News, more than 173,000 terawatts of solar energy

strikes the Earth continuously. If chargers can be transformed into needing solar energy instead

of electricity, imagine how less electricity gets used in a day. Not only will the researchers' study

be helpful to electricity, it may also assist so many more individuals.

Based on Zendure (October 10, 2017) That 90% of people panic and change their plans

when experiencing low battery anxiety, according to an LG Electronics Smartphone "Low

Battery Anxiety" Survey. Therefore, the majority of us won't have fun when we go out since

batteries are dead. When that phone's battery is down to 20%, people often skip the gym to

charge it instead, dispute with their partner about missed calls or texts, or place an order at a

bar while it charges. 32% of individuals will completely cancel their plans and go home to
charge their phones. Give yourself the freedom to do what you want, when you want. If

electronics are fully charged, many can accomplish more and worry less.

According to (Chargespot, September 2018) The use and presence of e-gadgets in the

contemporary workplace have finally gained the support of employers. Even employing the

personal devices of the workforce, they have discovered ways to increase productivity through

the use of pre-designed or custom apps that promote improved productivity and teamwork.

These workers travel day by day using their electronic gadgets and some others tend to forget

about recharging them on their way to their workplace. Charging on the way without a need of

outlets and heavy power banks can be done with ease by a solar powered charger that can be

bought anywhere, anytime, and helps employees reduce their carbon footprint.

Stated from (Cleveland C., January 2023) adolescents are also going through social and

emotional development. The pursuit of identity in adolescence's most significant endeavor.

Along with the search for identification comes the battle for independence (which is frequently a

lifetime journey that begins in youth) young adolescents choose to express and figure

themselves through online platforms and online games such as Facebook, Roblox, Discord, and

so much more. Online platforms are also a great help for their school activities and a great way

to do advanced studying. It also can be suitable for when outside, traveling, and when in

desperate need of charging.

Scope and Limitations

The use of upgrading solar panels to enhance the activity of having chargers for devices are a

counted factor for charging anywhere around the world, so long as sun is present. Having a

charger is important to humanity, and by 2020, over 79 million smartphones have been spotted

in the Philippines. Just think about the other devices and electronics. Many people carry and

bring their equipment to places with less to no chargers, which is why solar panel chargers are a

great chance and option to use during outdoors or away from accessible electricity. By the use
of these chargers, there will be less of a hassle in attempting to find a location in places where

there probably won’t even be what you need. There is little to no limit in this choice, since a

solar charger is accessible only from the help of sunlight. However, it becomes a bit more

difficult to comprehend a way when it’s night time, because solar chargers have won’t be

compatible with this type of time. It wouldn’t be so hard to find a place to store it either, as the

solar panels of the researchers are in the size of which can be brought almost anywhere,

depending on which size bought by the user. It can be used anywhere, set aside spaces with no

sunlight. If you have noticed, getting materials is one of the many reasons why some studies

can't be done. Some say excuses to not be able to provide their parts because of some lavish

reasons. mainly, the study is to be provided by the researchers but due to expenses, some

might struggle to give their part. While, solar panels are hard to obtain not just because of the

researchers capacity but also in their budgets. The researchers must find a way to successfully

deliver and develop their study because it is their responsibility for the study to be

accomplished.

Definition of Terms

The researchers have used a combination of words in regards to their explanations.

Contemporary - According to Google; something living or occurring at the same time.

Dispute - Means being or having disagreement or debate.

Economize - Is to reduce one’s expenses or spending in a certain subject or object, while

emission, according to the internet, is the production and discharge of something, especially gas

or radiation.

Endeavor - Is when one is at best attempt to try their hardest on doing or achieving something.

Lavish – Is to see or have something so rich or luxurious.

Photovoltaic - According to Google search, relating to the production of electric current at the

junction of two substances exposed to light.

Selenium - Is a chemical element of atomic number 34.

Semiconductor - Is a substance that works under very strict electrical properties that may serve

as a foundation for one’s devices.