TY - JOUR
T1 - Environmental impacts of solar energy systems
T2 - A review
AU - Rabaia, Malek Kamal Hussien
AU - Abdelkareem, Mohammad Ali
AU - Sayed, Enas Taha
AU - Elsaid, Khaled
AU - Chae, Kyu Jung
AU - Wilberforce, Tabbi
AU - Olabi, A. G.
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by the University of Sharjah , Project No. 19020406129 .
PY - 2021/2/1
Y1 - 2021/2/1
N2 - The annual increases in global energy consumption, along with its environmental issues and concerns, are playing significant roles in the massive sustainable and renewable global transmission of energy. Solar energy systems have been grabbing most attention among all the other renewable energy systems throughout the last decade. However, even renewable energies can have some adverse environmental repercussions; therefore, further attention and proper precautional procedures should be given. This paper discusses in detail the environmental impacts of several commercial and emerging solar energy systems at both small- and utility-scales. The study expands to some of the related advances, as well as some of the essential elements in their systems. The approach follows all the stages, starting with the designs, then throughout their manufacturing, materials, construction or installation phases, and over operation lifetime and decommissioning. Specific solutions for most systems such as waste minimization and recycling are discussed, alongside with some technically and ecologically favorable recommendations for mitigating the impacts.
AB - The annual increases in global energy consumption, along with its environmental issues and concerns, are playing significant roles in the massive sustainable and renewable global transmission of energy. Solar energy systems have been grabbing most attention among all the other renewable energy systems throughout the last decade. However, even renewable energies can have some adverse environmental repercussions; therefore, further attention and proper precautional procedures should be given. This paper discusses in detail the environmental impacts of several commercial and emerging solar energy systems at both small- and utility-scales. The study expands to some of the related advances, as well as some of the essential elements in their systems. The approach follows all the stages, starting with the designs, then throughout their manufacturing, materials, construction or installation phases, and over operation lifetime and decommissioning. Specific solutions for most systems such as waste minimization and recycling are discussed, alongside with some technically and ecologically favorable recommendations for mitigating the impacts.
KW - Climate change
KW - Emerging solar PV technologies
KW - Environmental impacts
KW - Life-cycle assessments
KW - Solar PV systems
KW - Solar thermal systems
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85090410961&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969720355182?via%3Dihub
U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141989
DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141989
M3 - Review article
C2 - 32920388
AN - SCOPUS:85090410961
SN - 0048-9697
VL - 754
JO - Science of the Total Environment
JF - Science of the Total Environment
M1 - 141989
ER -