1,955
edits
Solar panel minerals: Difference between revisions
no edit summary
No edit summary |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
It takes [[minerals]] to make [[solar panels]]. Some minerals are scarce. This might be an issue if we want to scale up green [[energy]] enough to replace [[fossil fuels]]. | It takes [[minerals]] to make [[solar panels]]. Some minerals are scarce. This might be an issue if we want to scale up green [[energy]] enough to replace [[fossil fuels]]. | ||
'''Summary:''' | |||
* ''Thin-film'' solar panel tech is '''not''' scalable enough. The earth just doesn't have enough rare minerals to be mined. | |||
* There might be [[solar/challenge 1|hope]] for scaling up some kind of "low-end" solar panel tech - perhaps crystalline silicon combined with mostly aluminium internal wiring instead of copper. The solar efficiency would be lower but maybe still worth it. {{rn}} | |||
The 3rd column of the tables | Below are ongoing tables of the minerals (and their quantities) involved in solar panel technologies. <!--Apparently this doesn't exist on the internet already, so we have to make it ourselves.--> The 3rd column of the tables is based on a scenario involving [[rooftop solar|375,000 km^2 of solar panels]] globally (all suitable rooftops covered in solar panels) (which is very roughly what it would take to [[replace fossil fuels]] as an energy source). | ||
<!-- | <!-- | ||
The list of minerals to consider, was inspired by https://palmetto.com/learning-center/blog/minerals-in-solar-panels-and-solar-batteries | The list of minerals to consider, was inspired by https://palmetto.com/learning-center/blog/minerals-in-solar-panels-and-solar-batteries | ||
--> | --> | ||
==General estimates== | ==General estimates== | ||