Double-sided solar panels increase panel quality but require more glass

That renewable energies have entered our life and our future expectations is a certainty by now and, for this reason, companies and the scientific community are committed to finding increasingly performing products that improve, not only the technical efficiency, but also reduce the cost of the energy produced, is an important wish.

In quest optics photovoltaics has made enormous strides in just a few years, creating double-sided solar panels that allow for better performance, not only through direct light, but also managing to intercept the light reflected from the surfaces surrounding the panel.

This technological improvement, however, requires more glass, creating an increase in demand for raw materials that has caused the price to skyrocket.

The problem is not only of an economic nature, but also concerns the future availability of glass to be processed in the next few years, a resource that, if not found in relation to the demand for the market, it would put the sector in difficulty.

If we analyze the problem from an economic point of view, therefore an increase in the costs of the raw material that make up a double-sided solar panel, we must consider that the share of current market for this type of panel is about 14% of those sold, forecasting an increase of up to 50% by 2022.

So an increase in the price of the raw material that will invest, probably 50% of the market, could lead to an increase in the cost of the panel which, in the general economy of 'plant, risks excessively thinning the profit margins of the sector without state support interventions.

Consequently, if solar projects were to be considered no longer profitable, investors would probably give up financing them with the consequence of reducing the growth of the sector.

As regards the increase in demand for glass, there are areas on the planet where separate collection does not work or does not apply, the consequence of which is that the glass is not sent for recycling and therefore an important resource is lost.

In other areas of the world, separate waste collection fails to cover the growing demand for glass to be recycled by the production industries, with the consequence of increasing prices and to reduce industrial productivity.

China is the world's largest producer of solar panels and is experiencing the difficulty of finding raw materials and containing production costs, a problem so important that the largest solar panel manufacturers, such as LONGi Solar, have asked the Chinese government to take an interest in the problem.

Considering that China, having declared its intention to reach carbon parity in 2060, is committed to increasing the production of energy from renewable sources, including solar is an irreplaceable pillar, increasing this type of production from the current 210 GW to around 2200 GW by 2060, a project that can also continue by solving the problem of the lack of glass on the market.

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