Spatiotemporal analysis of the future carbon footprint of solar electricity in the United States by a dynamic life cycle assessment
Jiaqi Lu,
Jing Tang,
Rui Shan,
Guanghui Li,
Pinhua Rao,
Nan Zhang
Affiliations
Jiaqi Lu
Innovation Centre for Environment and Resources, Shanghai University of Engineering Science, No.333 Longteng Road, Songjiang District, Shanghai 201620, China; Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Tohoku University, 6-6-07 Aoba, Aramaki-aza, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8579, Japan
Jing Tang
Innovation Centre for Environment and Resources, Shanghai University of Engineering Science, No.333 Longteng Road, Songjiang District, Shanghai 201620, China
Rui Shan
Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Carbon Baseline LLC, Shanghai 200071, China; Corresponding author
Guanghui Li
Innovation Centre for Environment and Resources, Shanghai University of Engineering Science, No.333 Longteng Road, Songjiang District, Shanghai 201620, China
Pinhua Rao
Innovation Centre for Environment and Resources, Shanghai University of Engineering Science, No.333 Longteng Road, Songjiang District, Shanghai 201620, China
Nan Zhang
Centre for Process Integration, Department of Chemical Engineering and Analytical Science, The University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
Summary: Solar photovoltaics (PVs) installation would increase 20-fold by 2050; however, considerable greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are generated during the cradle-to-gate production, with spatiotemporal variances depending on the grid emission. Thus, a dynamic life cycle assessment (LCA) model was developed to assess the accumulated PV panels with a heterogeneous carbon footprint if manufactured and installed in the United States. The state-level carbon footprint of solar electricity (CFEPV-avg) from 2022 to 2050 was estimated using several cradle-to-gate production scenarios to account for emissions stemming from electricity generated from solar PVs. The CFEPV-avg (min 0.032, max 0.051, weighted avg. 0.040 kg CO2-eq/kWh) in 2050 will be significantly lower than that of the comparison benchmark (min 0.047, max 0.068, weighted avg. 0.056 kg CO2-eq/kWh). The proposed dynamic LCA framework is promising for planning solar PV supply chains and, ultimately, the supply chain of an entire carbon-neutral energy system to maximize the environmental benefits.
