Solar Panel Components: Safety
Solar energy is considered a cleaner energy alternative to coal and natural gas. However, some people are concerned that solar panels are dangerous due to toxic materials within them. Though the health and safety of our communities are good things to be concerned about, solar panels are not a danger.
In most solar panels, 85 to 95% of the material is glass, plastic, and aluminum, making a frame that protects the electronics inside. An ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) layer applied to the glass helps keep it intact even if it is cracked like a car windshield. The inner part of the frame contains the solar cell that generates the power from the sun and the other electronic components that allow the cells to transport the energy. Two main types of solar make up 97% of the market. These are crystalline silicon panels (C-Si) and thin film cadmium telluride panels (CdTe). Their names are derived from the type of solar cells they use.
The main component in C-Si panels is silicon, a non-toxic mineral that makes up about 25% of the soil under our feet. Other materials are included in trace amounts, but the main concern is the lead-based solder used to link the individual cells within the panel. The average amount of lead in a panel is 12-15 grams or about half of the lead in a 12-gauge shotgun shell or 1/750th in a car battery.
CdTe thin-film panels draw concern from the use of cadmium telluride. This name can be misleading since the panel only uses 7 grams of CdTe to coat the thin film that produces electricity. Though CdTe is toxic, people often confuse this material with pure Cadmium, which is one hundred times more toxic.
Can these materials get out of the panels and into the environment?
Studies looking at both types of panels operating under normal conditions years after installation have found that the soil under the panels did not contain dangerous levels of harmful materials. A few studies have also put cracked solar panels in the field and found no significant release of toxins into the environment. This is mainly due to the EVA encapsulation limiting the ability of rainwater to get into the panel, as well as the strength of the attachment of the lead and CdTe to the solar cells.
What if a natural disaster or fire happens?
Solar arrays have already gone through these kinds of disasters. When hurricanes have hit solar arrays, they have had only limited damage. For example, with a top speed of 130 miles per hour, Hurricane Florence struck twenty facilities with 600,000 panels. Only twelve at one solar site were damaged. Solar panels are not particularly flammable because they mainly consist of glass, aluminum, and plastic. Studies that exposed panels to flames have shown little in the release of harmful toxins due to the EVA encapsulation on the glass, which melts together, trapping almost all the toxins within it before they can be released.
In conclusion, solar energy does not pose a severe risk to the communities around it. Like many other uses, such as industrial uses, other forms of power generation, or even fertilizer use in farming, we can’t guarantee they will not release anything harmful into the environment. However, with proper management, we can ensure that any release of toxic materials is well below an unsafe level.
To learn more about Large-Scale Solar in Pennsylvania or other energy sources and issues, please go to the following link to register for webinars or to watch recordings of previous Penn State webinars: Webinars - Browse by Education Format | Topic: Energy
