Amorphous silicon photovoltaic modules: a life cycle design case study

The life cycle design framework was applied to photovoltaic module design. Two metrics were used to assess life cycle energy performance of a PV module: energy payback time; and electricity production efficiency. These metrics are based on material production, manufacturing, and transportation energies, and were evaluated for several geographic locations. An aluminum frame was responsible for a significant fraction of the total energy invested in the studied module. Design options to reduce the energy impact of this and other components are discussed.