[RE-wrenches] Installations in High Salt Spray Environments

[Solarguy]

William
Attached is a Power Point slide I made that shows the 'energy payback' from PV. The Swiss based IEA Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme takes a very serious look at the PV industry and its long term effects on the planet and PV is already pretty benign. While I don't know the logic behind their calculations my first thought is that with the volume of aluminum being extracted and produced for all industry world-wide, the impact by the PV industry is probably next to nothing.
And using a plastic compound would mean using a crude oil based product which is even a bigger environmental blight than aluminum production-imo.
Besides, with the PV industries rush to lower prices someone would have discovered a cheaper non-metallic replacement for aluminum if it is out there. Having worked for many years in the composite/plastics industry I can say that the production of a substitute fiber re-enforced compression molded composite for PV frames would be more costly than aluminum and most likely still never match the rigidity of aluminum. 
Now if the PV industry trended back to smaller modules a 'plastic' frame could become workable but I don't see that moving out of R&D as long as prices and margins are so low. And I don't see a corrosion resistant module becoming a niche market any time soon unless another "Silicon Energy" type entrepreneur decides there is a market. 

Jim Duncan
****

-----Original Message-----
From: re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org [mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of William Miller
Sent: Wednesday, March 14, 2012 9:13 PM
To: RE-wrenches
Cc: 'RE-wrenches'
Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] Installations in High Salt Spray Environments

Marco:

Are we in need of a new generation of PV modules with plastic frames?  How about frame-less modules on recycled plastic racking?  What is the energy cost for aluminum frame modules versus plastic or recycled plastic?  What is the energy cost of anodizing aluminum frames and racking?

There is a need here folks, that is not being filled.  Entrepreneurs, where are you?

William Miller






At 06:51 PM 3/14/2012, Marco Mangelsdorf wrote:
>Living here in the middle of the big Blue Pacific Ocean where one is 
>never all that far from the ocean, I really question how well any metal 
>is going to hold up over time, no matter what the warranty says.
>
>Even stainless rusts in these here parts.
>
>Installer beware and for sure don’t put yourselves at risk by 
>providing anything more than the modco’s factory warranty.
>
>marco
>

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