scholarly journals Life Cycle Assessment of PV systems

10.5772/23134 ◽  
2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masakazu Ito
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Pv Systems

scholarly journals Adoption of Photovoltaic Systems Along a Sure Path: A Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) Study Applied to the Analysis of GHG Emission Impacts

Energies ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 2806 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel Constantino ◽  
Marcos Freitas ◽  
Neilton Fidelis ◽  
Marcio Pereira
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emission ◽  
Great Influence ◽  
Electric Energy ◽  
Renewable Sources ◽  
Pv Systems ◽  
Payback Time ◽  
High Share

The expansion of photovoltaic solar energy in the world is significant. However, its contribution to decreases in greenhouse gases (GHG) is not an absolute guarantee. In this context, it is necessary to evaluate its benefits in advance, considering the structure of the electric energy supply matrix of the country producing the photovoltaic solar system, as well as the country where the technology will be implemented. This study evaluates the adoption of renewable sources for electric power generation in a country with a high share of renewable energy. A life-cycle assessment (LCA) of a set of multi-Si photovoltaic (PV) systems installed in the Brazilian northeast (NE), was carried out. The actual generation data of 10 plants totaling 1.1 MWp installed capacity were evaluated during two years of operation. Energy payback time (EPBT), greenhouse gas emission rate (GHGe-rate), and emission payback time were calculated. The great influence of the electric matrix characteristics of the country manufacturing PV systems was evidenced in the results. The interconnected Brazilian electrical system had a 2020 projected GHGe-rate of 63.9 g CO2/kWh, while the results of 70% of the photovoltaic solar power plants (PSPS) assessed herein exhibit higher GHGe-rates. Thus, in countries where the electric matrix comprises a high share of renewable sources, such as Brazil, the incentive to use PV systems manufactured in nations whose electric matrix registers high emission factors should be well evaluated in terms of the impacts of GHG concentrations and the promotion of sustainable development, in order to avoid indirect import of significant amounts of carbon embedded in the systems.

Life cycle assessment of cadmium telluride photovoltaic (CdTe PV) systems

Solar Energy ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 103 ◽  
pp. 78-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyoungseok Kim ◽  
Kyounghoon Cha ◽  
Vasilis M. Fthenakis ◽  
Parikhit Sinha ◽  
Tak Hur
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Cadmium Telluride ◽  
Pv Systems

scholarly journals Life Cycle Assessment of a Buoy-Rope-Drum Wave Energy Converter

Energies ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 2432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiang Zhai ◽  
Linsen Zhu ◽  
Shizhou Lu
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Wave Energy ◽  
Impact Analysis ◽  
Wave Energy Converter ◽  
Capacity Factor ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Solar Pv ◽  
Energy Converter ◽  
Pv Systems

This study presents a life cycle assessment (LCA) study for a buoy-rope-drum (BRD) wave energy converter (WEC), so as to understand the environmental performance of the BRD WEC by eco-labeling its life cycle stages and processes. The BRD WEC was developed by a research group at Shandong University (Weihai). The WEC consists of three main functional modules including buoy, generator and mooring modules. The designed rated power capacity is 10 kW. The LCA modeling is based on data collected from actual design, prototype manufacturing, installation and onsite sea test. Life cycle inventory (LCI) analysis and life cycle impact analysis (LCIA) were conducted. The analyses show that the most significant environmental impact contributor is identified to be the manufacturing stage of the BRD WEC due to consumption of energy and materials. Potential improvement approaches are proposed in the discussion. The LCI and LCIA assessment results are then benchmarked with results from reported LCA studies of other WECs, tidal energy converters, as well as offshore wind and solar PV systems. This study presents the energy and carbon intensities and paybacks with 387 kJ/kWh, 89 gCO2/kWh, 26 months and 23 months respectively. The results show that the energy and carbon intensities of the BRD WEC are slightly larger than, however comparable, in comparison with the referenced WECs, tidal, offshore wind and solar PV systems. A sensitivity analysis was carried out by varying the capacity factor from 20–50%. The energy and carbon intensities could reach as much as 968 kJ/kWh and 222 gCO2/kWh respectively while the capacity factor decreasing to 20%. Limitations for this study and scope of future work are discussed in the conclusion.

scholarly journals Using Life Cycle Assessment to Determine the Environmental Impacts Caused by Solar Photovoltaic Systems

2019 ◽  
Vol 122 ◽  
pp. 02005
Author(s):  
Anushka Pal ◽  
Jeff Kilby
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Manufacturing Process ◽  
Crystalline Silicon ◽  
Solar Photovoltaic ◽  
Solar Pv ◽  
Pv Systems ◽  
Silicon Ingot ◽  
Pv Panel

The paper presents research that investigated the Life Cycle Assessment of multi-crystalline photovoltaic (PV) panels, by considering environmental impacts of the entire life cycle for any solar PVsystems. The overall manufacturing process of a solar PV panel ranging from silica extraction, crystalline silicon ingot growth, wavering to module fabrication and packing of the solar PV panel. The results from this research showed that the module assembly and cell processing of the manufacturing process contributed towards the main environmental impacts of the life cycle of solar PV systems.

scholarly journals Life-cycle assessment of residential-scale grid-connected photovoltaic system in Malaysia based on monocrystalline silicon modules

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 677
Author(s):  
Atiqah Hamizah Mohd Nordin ◽  
Shahril Irwan Sulaiman ◽  
Sulaiman Shaari ◽  
Rijalul Fahmi Mustapa
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Monocrystalline Silicon ◽  
Photovoltaic System ◽  
System Capacity ◽  
Solar Irradiation ◽  
Cumulative Energy ◽  
Pv Systems ◽  
Scale Grid

<p>Even though PV systems have been promoted as a green form of electrification, such systems are still contributing to environmental impacts after considering life-cycle impact during material extraction, manufacturing processes of its components, installation, operation, and maintenance. This paper presents a life-cycle assessment to quantify the environmental impact of residential-scale grid-connected PV systems in Malaysia using monocrystalline silicon PV module. LCA had been carried out by using OpenLCA 1.8 software, Ecoinvent 3.5 database, and impact assessment method of IMPACT2002+ and CED. The influence of varying system capacity from 3 to 12 kWp, system lifetime of 21, 25 and 30 years, and solar irradiation of 1560.8, 1651.8, &amp; 1935.5 kWh/m<sup>2</sup>/yr, were investigated. The results revealed that the greenhouse gas emissions rate, cumulative energy demand, and energy payback time of residential-scale grid-connected PV systems in Malaysia ranged from 37.97 to 67.26 g CO<sub>2</sub>-eq/kWh, 4387.10 to 4699.99 MJ/m<sup>2</sup>, and 6.37 to 7.90 years, respectively. This study also evaluated indicators of energy return on investment. The overall finding implies that the installation of residential-scale grid-connected PV systems in Malaysia offers significant potential for GHG emissions reduction in the country.</p>

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