Buyer sensitivity & the adoption of solar photovoltaic technology in residential applications

Rising global carbon emissions and the reality of limited resources is changing the worldwide outlook on the future of fossil fuel based energy. In the process of developing strategies government and citizens look to renewable energy technologies as possible solutions. One of these strategies is solar electric technology. Although photovoltaic technology has been available for decades, its presence in the built environment, residential structures in particular, has been scarcely seen. This thesis seeks to find why residential consumers are not adopting solar photovoltaic systems on a mainstream scale. A survey conducted at the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2011 and the Solar Decathlon Europe 2012 asked over 800 respondents across the two samples about their current perceptions towards the adoption of solar electric technology in their homes. Data was analyzed on three main fronts: knowledge, social motivation, and cost. The analysis of the US and Spain surveys showed trends within and between each sample. Consumer sensitivities showed those sampled were willing to justify a solar electric system if the market reached their desired payback timeline. Team Purdue, of the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2011 in Washington, D.C. presented a net-zero home marketed towards the average residential consumer. The INhome was designed to fit into the look of neighborhoods across the United States. With an emphasis on balancing efficiency and cost, the INhome was used as a case study to compare perceptions received from the survey to market reality. Calculations showed that although the INhome, with its 8.64 kilowatt array is not financially viable in today\u27s market, it may be seen as an intelligent investment within the decade. Based on the opinions gathered between the two surveys, if certain government and industry goals are reached, there may be a much greater prevalence of solar electric systems in the residential sector of the United States