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Thursday, February 16, 2012

Environmental Impacts of PVF Film for Use in Photovoltaic Modules

By Christopher Eyres


Solar energy offers a "greener" alternative choice to normal electricity generation. To appraise the advantages of solar energy energy, life cycle analysis of photovoltaic ( PV ) modules is necessary, requiring environmental impacts of all materials used in their production. Therefore , a cradle-to-gate LCA for the production of Tedlar polyvinylfluoride ( PVF ) film has been generated. Tedlar PVF films are preferred as the backing sheet for PV modules due to their glorious strength, weather resistance, UV resistance, and moisture barrier properties. These properties noticeably improve module life, permitting module warranties up to twenty-five years. Requiring 317 MJ of first energy per kg for its production, Tedlar PVF film contributes less than 1.5% of the entire PV module's embodied energy. Less than eight months of extended module life justifies using Tedlar film instead of other backing sheet materials.

Other environmental impacts are also comparatively insignificant matched against the PV module and approximately in proportion to the impacts of energy use. The planetary warming potential of Tedlar, 23.3 kg CO2 eq. Per kg, contributes less than 2 percent of the total GWP for a photovoltaic module. Tedlar PVF film donates nominal environmental impact in the production of a photovoltaic module while noticeably reducing the burden of solar energy by increasing module life.

While pollution-free electricity is a product of a photovoltaic ( PV ) module, the energy and environmental impacts of manufacturing the module itself are not insignificant. Life cycle analysis has been utilized in several studies to determine the energy payback time connected with the manufacture of a PV module [1,2,9], with a main feature being the life of a module. The focus of most studies has been on the creation of PV cells - as they represent a lot of the energy and environmental impacts of a PV module. Nevertheless this study discusses the impact of a back sheet material to a module's environmental and energy performance as seen through its cradle-to-gate impact for turn out, but just as importantly, thru its ability to lengthen the life span of the module.

Tedlar TPT back sheets play a significant role in sustaining the life of a PV module. Their excellent strength, weather resistance, UV resistance, and moisture barrier properties make allowances for warranties up to twenty-five years. To date, the environmental impacts of Tedlar film utilized in PV modules have been approximated through comparison to related products. An exhaustive analysis of the production process at DuPont and analysis of raw material feeds was performed to compute both the embodied energy and the environmental impacts from cradle-to-gate for the creation of Tedlar cast film. These impacts are put into perspective with those of a whole PV module with both virgin and recycled silicon.

Energy use is typically the focus for the environmental impacts of PV module components in life cycle research studies since the aim of a module is, in fact , to supply energy. But fluorinated products typically raise concerns with global warming potential and ozone depletion potential.




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