You know why traditional chemical manufacturing processes are considered very energy efficient these days? Because they have been doing these processes for decades.
This cannot be said for newer manufacturing methods such as solar panel production, according to Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Timothy Gutowski.
"The seemingly extravagant use of materials and energy resources by many newer manufacturing processes is alarming and needs to be addressed alongside claims of improved sustainability from products manufactured by these means," he said.Professor Gutowski said the inherent inefficiency of current solar panel manufacturing methods could drastically reduce the technology's lifecycle energy balance, "that is, the ratio of the energy the panel would produce over its useful lifetime to the energy required to manufacture it."
MIT also analyzed other major manufacturing processes in a study, which was recently published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology (ES&T). The researchers, however, did not analyze production of pharmaceuticals or petroleum, and they only looked primarily at processes where electricity was the primary energy source.
Back to solar, here are some recent investment news in the industry:
- Worldwide Energy and Manufacturing USA
says its global solar division has a backlog of $52 million in solar
module contracts. To date, Worldwide has signed approximately $90
million in new contracts, the majority of which are expected to be
recorded during the 2009 calendar year.
- Lauren Engineers & Constructors signed a contract
with Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) as the engineering,
procurement and construction contractor for a new 75 MW Concentrated Solar Power Plant
near Indiantown, FL. The project is said to be the second largest solar
thermal power plant in the world and the world's first hybrid solar
facility.
- BioSolar plans to expand the company's BioBacksheet™ technology
to accommodate copper-indium-gallium-selenide and cadmium telluride
thin-film modules. The BioBacksheet™ is a premium-grade backsheet
consisting of a cellulosic film combined with a highly water resistant
and high dielectric strength nylon film made from castor beans.
- GRUPO IBEREOLICA signed an agreement with INVERAVANTE for the construction and operation of two CSP solar thermal power plants in Seville and Badajoz, Spain. The plants will commence construction immediately and cost around 600 Million Euros.
- Air Products signed a letter of intent
to provide liquid bulk and on-site gases to China's Best Solar Hi Tech
Co., Ltd, which is building a new thin-film photovoltaic (PV) facility
in Nanchang City, Jiangxi Province, China. The facility will have an
annual solar module manufacturing capacity of 330 MW at Phase 1, using
amorphous silicon thin-film technology.
- Total
and GDF SUEZ are considering locating a silicium wafers fabrication
plant intended for the photovoltaic industry on the De Vernejoul
industrial site in the Moselle region in France. The initial investment
is estimated at approximately €70M and could involve 80 to 100 jobs.
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