Now owners, engineers, and electricians can quickly come up to speed on the five most prominent distributed generation technologies with Essentials of Distributed Generation Systems. Whether you're looking for an introduction to the topic or an overview of the selection, design, and installation of these systems, this practical guide is your source for complete and up-to-date information on the most common alternative energy technologies. The first title in the highly anticipated Essentials of Electricity series provides electricians with what they need to know for solar photovoltaic, wind turbine, fuel cell, microturbine, and engine-generator system technologies. Using concise explanations with detailed and clear illustrations, this book will prepare you to select the most appropriate type of distributed generation by examining the strengths and weaknesses of each system and summarizing each system's components, operations, and limitations, while discussing common factors that affect each of these alternative technologies. This multi-faceted resource has been strategically arranged to provide fast access to information on each of the individual systems as well as a comprehensive look at how on-site generation technologies work as a whole. Benefits of distributed generation systems include: Reducing electric utility bills Improving the reliability of electric power Improving the payback of required generation systems Making power marketable to sell to utilities Generating environmentally-friendly power