Dr. Richard Komp, a worldwide distinguished leader and expert in solar technologies came to UD on Friday night, providing a graphic lecture in the field of photovoltaics (PV) modules with which he has been experimenting and researching professionally for more than 40 years.

Serving as the prelude for Saturday's practical details in workshop at Kettering Labs, Dr. Komp filled this lecture with his vivid real life experiences in dealing with photovoltaics workshops in many underdeveloped countries. In order to demonstrate the point that solar architecture housing is much cheaper than conventional housing, Dr. Komp himself hasn't paid electrical bills for 21 years.

Dr. Komp serves as a good poster child for using solar energy. His off-the-grid technical advanced house that he built by himself in Jonesport, Maine, was decked out with many of the technologies including photovoltaics, solar thermal hot water and rain water catchments, making the home self-sufficient and energy efficient for almost the entire course of the year.

His cost efficient PV powered house gave students at the lecture a better understanding of new lifestyle and modern architecture. Simply put, solar cells have built-in voltage produced by layers of dissimilar conductor materials. PV-thermal hybrid modules are designed to convert sunlight into electrical energy.

Dr. Komp now serves as the director of Skyheat Associates, a non-profit organization that is dedicated to promoting and educating the public's awareness of energy conservation and use of solar energy. Apart from that, he is also the editor for Maine Solar Energy Association's quarterly newsletter and has been continually named by his faculties as "The Maine Solar Premier."

A great number of academic papers and books are under his name, including his most current edition "Practical Photovoltaics." He has taught hundreds of workshops all around the world including, but not limited to, Nicaragua, Mali, Pakistan and Haiti.

Dr. Komp has two different workshops in two universities in Peru, where he led his group to figure out the power of solar energy in Peru.

Work in different countries had given him a good background for his studies. In Pakistan, his workshop used PV modules to make a solar battery charger. In Rwanda, the cooperative group has installed two modules on the workshop roof testing the first two PV modules that have ever been made. In Nicaragua, PV powered water pumps supplied three villages, covering over 160 homes of daily facilities and usage; in Haiti the box-type solar cooker was very popular among local housewives. In Mali, the low-tech luminary machine made by PV modules was first used after the arrival of Dr. Komp a few years ago.

PV technologies are not exclusive to well-developed countries. In today's globalization and business world, many top Forbes companies have already incorporated solar energy into their business models, such as GE, Royal Dutch Shell, AT&T;, HSBC and Wal-Mart. From the economic impact and marketing perspective, the application of solar energy is a trend for sustainable development.

Gokul Murugesan, a graduate student from the mechanical and aerospace engineering department at UD has looked into these PV models.

"The PV technologies have a very prosperous future," Murugesan said. "It is really effective and efficient if all the people start using solar system. There is almost no maintenance, and there are no monthly bills waiting for you. But you could still enjoy a nice, practical and affordable life at the same time."

Gokul works for Oracle and he recently did research on the project in boiler efficiency in the thermal field, which focuses on the designing of engines using thermal energy as alternative fuels.

"He really provides me a different perspective which I am trying to work on," Murugesan said.