 
As the world's fossil fuel reserves become increasingly depleted,
engineers and scientists have been prompted to develop alternative
energy sources that are renewable, efficient, and economical.
One of these promising alternative energy sources is solar energy.
The energy that the Earth receives from the Sun in just two
weeks is equivalent to the fossil energy stored in all of the
Earth's known coal, oil, and natural gas reserves! By developing
technologies that can harness the Sun's energy, we can become
less dependent on our precious non-renewable fossil fuel resources.
Solar energy systems made with copper, brass, and bronze are
being installed in many parts of the world to help heat our
homes and our water. In hot and sunny climates, such as in Singapore
or Arizona, solar heaters can provide up to 91% of a user's
annual hot water load.
In temperate climates, such as in Rome, Marseille, or Tokyo,
these systems can provide over 40% of a user's annual hot water
load.In hot climates, solar heating systems can also be used
to heat water in swimming pools. The copper solar panels in
these systems do not degrade from UV radiation and they do not
develop pinholes and flexural stresses, which can result in
leakage. In fact, copper solar panels often last a lifetime.
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