| Posted: Sep 17, 2010 |
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Research team assesses environmental impact of organic solar cells
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(Nanowerk News) Solar energy could be a central alternative to petroleum-based energy production. However, current solar-cell technology often does not produce the same energy yield and is more expensive to mass-produce. In addition, information on the total effect of solar energy production on the environment is incomplete, experts say.
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To better understand the energy and environmental benefits and detriments of solar power, a research team from Rochester Institute of Technology has conducted one of the first life-cycle assessments of organic solar cells. The study found that the embodied energy — or the total energy required to make a product — is less for organic solar cells compared with conventional inorganic devices.
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"This analysis provides a comprehensive assessment of how much energy it takes to manufacture an organic solar cell, which has a significant impact on both the cost and environmental impact of the technology," says Brian Landi, assistant professor of chemical engineering at RIT and a faculty advisor on the project
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"Organic solar cells are flexible and lightweight, and they have the promise of low-cost solution processing, which can have advantages for manufacturing over previous-generation technologies that primarily use inorganic semiconductor materials," adds Annick Anctil, lead researcher on the study and a fourth-year doctoral candidate in RIT's doctoral program in sustainability. "However, previous assessments of the energy and environmental impact of the technology have been incomplete and a broader analysis is needed to better evaluate the overall effect of production and use."
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The study sought to calculate the total energy use and environmental impact of the material collection, fabrication, mass production and use of organic solar cells through a comprehensive life-cycle assessment of the technology.
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According to Anctil, previous life-cycle assessments had not included a component-by-component breakdown of the individual materials present in an organic solar cell or a calculation of the total energy payback of the device, which is defined as the energy produced from its use versus the energy needed to manufacture the cell.
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The team found that when compared to inorganic cells, the energy payback time for organic solar cells was lower. Ongoing studies to verify the device stability are still warranted, however.
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"The data produced will help designers and potential manufacturers better assess how to use and improve the technology and analyze its feasibility versus other solar and alternative-energy technologies," adds Landi.
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The team presented the results at the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers 2010 Photovoltaic Specialists Conference. Anctil, who won a student award at the conference for best research, hopes to further analyze the environmental impacts of solar cell development with additional life-cycle assessments of other types of solar cell technology.
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The study was funded through the United States Department of Energy and also included researchers from RIT's Golisano Institute for Sustainability and NanoPower Research Labs.
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