PV Solar = True Green

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Sometimes it can be difficult to gauge sustainability, because of all the factors that can contribute to the footprint of any given product. And while we all know that solar cells produce clean electricity once they’re installed, how much waste, pollution and greenhouse gases do they create while being manufactured?

Check out this article on the Scientific American website explaining how the entire life cycle of every common type of solar cell produces so little pollution and waste that even when made with power provided by coal-powered plants, solar power would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 90 percent if it replaced (or phased out) fossil fuels.

Environmental scientists at Brookhaven National Laboratory tested the four most common types of PV cells: multicrystalline silicon, monocrystalline silicon, ribbon silicon and thin-film. They all produced fewer greenhouse gases over their entire life cycle when compared with oil, coal and natural gas.


Posted on Tuesday, March 4th, 2008 at 12:31 pm | Tagged in Global Warming, Photovoltaics | posted by Dina

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