Fossil Fuel Used In Manufacturing Solar Panels

Anything made of metal takes lots of energy to make.

Fossil fuel used in manufacturing solar panels.

Solar energy is a clean energy. Unlike energy from fossil fuels such as oil coal and gas the generation of electricity by so called photovoltaic pv panels does not release planet harming carbon dioxide. A new company biosolar aims to kick. This polluting cycle is continuous yet fossil fuel abundance is not.

The cost of solar pv is now at 10 per kilowatt hour versus electricity from fossil fuels that typically is between 05 and 17 per kilowatt hour. Another way to compare fossil fuels and solar power is by how much energy can be extracted and stored for electricity. Again when solar panels produce electricity they do not release greenhouse gases but the process of manufacturing transportation installation and disposing of solar panels does. Even more importantly as long as the sun shines there is endless energy to harness.

The metal train cars and the metal railroad tracks that are used to truck that coal by rail that runs across the country from wyoming to fuel the coal plant in pennsylvania all those things made of metal take energy to make. Fabricating the panels requires caustic chemicals such as sodium hydroxide and hydrofluoric acid and the process uses water as well as electricity the production of which emits greenhouse gases. How is solar energy harnessed. In comparison while making equipment for solar systems may involve fossil fuels once the solar system is in place and working there are no emissions.

But the process of making the various components requires fossil fuels both for power and for the components themselves some of which are based on petroleum. Although manufacturing solar panels utilize fossil fuels the overall gain is greater than using fossil fuels alone because less is needed and all other powering thereafter is done by capturing the sun s energy. Fossil fuels are more energy dense than solar power.