Do Your Solar Modules Reflect Your Values?
- jpgiovannettone
- 4 days ago
- 3 min read
Two major tasks prior to installing solar modules (i.e., panels) involve selecting the companies that manufacture and install the panels you purchase. At first glance this may seem like a simple step as you only need to find panels of sufficient quality at a reasonable price. Going deeper, there are several factors to consider other than cost, factors that reflect values related to sustainability and social justice. These values are associated with four aspects of the installation process: 1) production (sourcing and labor), 2) installation (labor), 3) batteries (sourcing), and 4) end of life/maintenance. This article will focus on the first aspect: production.
Production includes the manufacture of the major components required in your entire solar system. In the photo above, one solar module (outlined by the thicker white lines) consists of several solar cells (outlined by the thinner white lines). Solar cells perform the actual conversion of solar energy into electricity. The most common number of solar cells included in one module is typically 60 or 72; the modules shown above contain 54 cells each.
Solar cells are typically made of a type of crystalline silicon referred to as monocrystalline or polycrystalline. During production, silicon is heated to extremely high temperatures followed by a cooling process that results in the formation of either a single or multiple crystals. The higher the number of crystals, the less efficient a solar module is in terms of converting solar energy into energy we can use. More details concerning the difference between the two types is given in the video below, though the person in the video does get a bit technical at times. Additional information on this topic as well as other considerations when installing solar panels can be found on the EnergySage website.
Other questions that you might want to ask pertaining to potential value-related concerns during solar module production include the following:
Where are the module components manufactured?
Does certification exist to ensure that no forced labor was used?
Are the materials that are used to manufacture the module components sustainably sourced?
The questions above relate to the type of labor used throughout the production process and the overall transparency of this process. For example, is forced labor being used during any part of production, including the mining of quartz, which is used to produce high-quality silicon? In the past, this was a big issue in the Xinjiang province of northwestern China, where many people within the mostly Muslim Uyghur population there were (and may still be) being forced into labor camps for such purposes. To avoid this, request that the company installing your modules only consider manufacturers who have been able to supply signed letters from their suppliers that state that no forced labor has been used in the production of their modules. A popular option is to go with a manufacturer located in the United States or Canada, some examples of which can be found here, but this only means that the modules are manufactured locally while the raw materials were likely sourced from locations overseas (e.g., China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines, etc.). Some of the more notable North American companies include Silfab Solar, Heliene, Mission Solar, and Sunpower. Silfab in particular has a strong commitment toward ensuring that their modules are sourced and made sustainability and ethically. Even when considering one of these manufacturers, be sure to contact them directly to find out from where they source their raw materials.
Objective
Feel free to leave a comment regarding your own experience with one or more solar manufacturers. Thank you!
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