On average, how much energy does it take to produce 1 watt of photovoltaic material?
I’m wondering how long a given solar panel needs to produce before it "makes up for" the energy used in it’s creation. How much energy does it take to make a 1 watt solar panel?
I realize there are many different manufacturing methods, but I’m looking for a ballpark figure for the most common types of photovoltaics in widespread use today.
The following from the National Renewable Energy Labs will help.
http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy99osti/24619.pdf
http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy04osti/35489.pdf
The paper is somewhat dated, the payback time is less with current technology. Lowest energy input would likely be a thin-film manufacturing process such as employed by First Solar.
January 19th, 2010 at 10:19 am
I do not believe you can get an answer to this. The reason is:
1. There are a LOT of manufacturers all working at different efficiency levels.
2. Improvements are made almost daily.
3. The glass panels are not the only ones being produced anymore. There are now some rubber like panels as well as a paint on material.
If you need an answer for a project, there are tons of sites on the web that can tell you how to make a photovoltaic cell at home pretty easily. You could build one and get the results yourself.
References :
January 19th, 2010 at 10:33 am
The following from the National Renewable Energy Labs will help.
http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy99osti/24619.pdf
http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy04osti/35489.pdf
The paper is somewhat dated, the payback time is less with current technology. Lowest energy input would likely be a thin-film manufacturing process such as employed by First Solar.
References :