The University is currently working on the phase two of this project, a 4 kW Building Integrated Photovoltaic system to be inaugurated by September 1999. Thus, photovoltaic cells make renewable electricity directly from light or sunlight. The price continues to drop with improvements in manufacturing and market development. Today photovoltaic cells are about 100 cm2 and produce about 1.75 watts of electricity in full sunlight. The cells are wired together to make modules which are wired together into large array fields.
Sunlight falling on the cells is converted directly into clean renewable electricity.
C. A total of 96 modules are wired together into four Arrays to produce about 27 kilowatts of D.C. electricity under full sunlight. 200 volts in junction boxes located on the array and wired together in six circuits. The HHSC solar power plant produces about 20 kilowatts of AC electricity under full sun. Over the period of a typical year the plant will produce about 35,000 kWh, enough for 5 to 10 typical Texas homes, or about 15 typical offices in the Health Science Center building. The HHSC plans to build a much larger photovoltaic plant to power a Nursing and Bio-medical Sciences Building planned for construction in the near future.