Kharchenko – Individual Solar Power Systems
Kharchenko’s book, *Individual Solar Installations*, provides a detailed description of the principles behind converting solar radiation into heat and electricity, and presents practical schematics and designs for autonomous solar systems.
Solar energy can be converted into thermal, mechanical, and electrical energy, and utilized in chemical and biological processes. Solar installations are employed in heating and cooling systems for residential and public buildings, as well as in industrial processes operating at low, medium, and high temperatures. They are used for applications such as hot water production, the desalination of seawater or mineralized water, and the drying of materials and agricultural products.
Solar energy drives photosynthesis and plant growth, and facilitates various photochemical processes.
Methods for the thermodynamic conversion of solar energy into electricity—based on heat engine cycles, thermoelectric processes, and thermionic emission—are well known, as are direct conversion methods such as the photovoltaic and photoemissive effects. Photovoltaic converters and thermodynamic conversion systems utilizing heat engines have seen the most widespread practical application.
