RSE provided input for the publication of a study entitled ‘Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Passivated Emitter and Rear Contact (PERC) Photovoltaic Module Technology,’ the report produced for IEA PVPS – Task 12 on the environmental impacts generated by the life cycle of a photovoltaic system equipped with PERC modules.

Elisabetta Brivio, Andrea Danelli and Pierpaolo Girardi, Head of the ‘Life Cycle Analysis’ Research Group, of RSE’s Sustainable Development and Energy Sources Department, collaborated on the report. The work was contributed by Eng. Nicola Baggio, CTO of FuturaSUN, and Dr. Joris Libal, Project Manager Technology Transfer at the ISC Konstanza research center.

The photovoltaic (PV) sector has undergone significant development in recent years, and there are many different technologies currently marketed. As the Italian power sector aims to be environmentally and economically sustainable, it is important to evaluate and compare the environmental profile of various PV generation technologies. Among the high-efficiency technologies, PERC technology has the largest market share.

The report analyzes the potential environmental impacts associated with PERC technology, using a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach, and compares them with those related to monocrystalline silicon (Al-BSF) technology.