Below, we list the potential pros and cons of solar energy.
This guide forms part of a series of guides we have put together outlining the benefits and disadvantages of different energy sources and energy generation methods.
Summary – Potential Pros & Cons Of Solar Energy
Potential Pros
Is Considered Renewable Energy
No Greenhouse Emissions Whilst In Operation
Does Not Release Air Pollutants Whilst In Operation
No Waste By-Products Whilst In Operation
No Refuelling Is Required, & Solar Energy Is Free
Solar Energy Can Be Used Off Grid, Or Fed Into The Grid
May Provide Some Level Of Energy Independence (For Both Countries, & Individuals)
There’s Different Types Of Solar Energy Systems & Technology Available
Solar Energy Systems & Technology Might Improve In Capability & Performance Over Time
Several Factors May Lead To Cheaper Solar Energy In The Future
Is A Portable Energy Source
Is Versatile Both In Terms Of Installation, & Range Of Uses
Might Have Low Maintenance Requirements In Some Instances
Solar Farms May Have A Shorter Lead Time To Build Than Power Plants Such As Nuclear Power Plants
Distribution & Modular Set Up May Provide Certain Benefits
May Use Land More Efficiently In Some Instances
May Have A Small Water Footprint Whilst In Operation Compared To Some Other Energy Sources
May Not Have The Same Price Fluctuations As Some Fossil Fuels
Solar May Be More Predictable Than Wind Energy Specifically
Solar Energy May Be More Predictable Than Wind Energy Specifically
Residential Solar Setups May Present Several Benefits
Potential Cons
Low Power Density & Power Output
Might Have A Poor Capacity Factor Compared To Some Other Energy Sources
May Not Be Suitable Right Now For The Largest Or Greatest Scales Of Energy Generation, Or As A City’s Predominant (Or Sole) Energy Source
Can Be Dependent On Exposure To, & Intensity Of Sunlight
Is Considered A Variable/Intermittent Energy Source
May Have Issues With Meeting Demand Peaks (& General Energy Demand Profiles) Of Certain Cities & Towns
May Sometimes Rely On Backup Energy Sources, & Also Batteries For Energy Storage
Grid Integration May Be An Issue That Needs To Be Addressed In Some Countries
May Lead To More Expensive Electricity Prices In Some Instances
Return On Investment/Initial Cost Might Take Time
May Use Land Less Efficiently When Considering Power Density
Lifespan Of Solar Panels May Be Shorter Than The Lifespan Of Some Other Energy Sources
Solar Panels Might Use Rare Materials
Solar Panels Might Requires More Construction Material Than Nuclear, & May Generate More Waste
Might Have A Larger Greenhouse Footprint Than Nuclear Energy
Oil/Petroleum May Be Used To Make Some Solar Panels
Residential Solar Setups May Present Several Issues
There May Be Challenges With Recycling Solar Panels In Some Places
General Summary
Solar energy may have some very clear potential benefits, and also drawbacks.
On one hand, solar energy itself is considered renewable, solar energy systems don’t emit greenhouse gases or air pollutants whilst in operation, and solar panels are very versatile with their installation and uses.
It’s also worth consideration that major countries that have invested in, and gone ahead with installed capacity for renewable energy, have mainly focussed on solar energy and wind energy.
But, on the other hand and compared to some other energy sources, solar energy currently has lower power density, a lower capacity factor, is a variable/intermittent energy source, relies on sunlight to capture energy, and even relies on petroleum for the manufacture of solar panels.
Solar might also require other energy sources to support it in a city’s energy mix.
Technology improvements and other factors may change some of the current drawbacks for solar energy, but, it seems as though it has some clear limitations right now compared to some other energy sources.
*Note
The pros and cons in this guide are broad generalisations.
Each energy project in each geographic location will have it’s own factors and variables to consider, so, each one will require a separate assessment of it’s individual pros and cons.
The development of technology, as well as other factors might change pros and cons in the future too.
Potential Pros Of Solar Energy
Is Considered Renewable Energy
Solar energy from the sun is considered a renewable energy source
Solar energy from the Sun is expected to be available for the next 5 billion years – which is how long the Sun is expected to last
The supply is basically infinite when considering how much is available vs how much we can consume
This is in comparison to say fossil fuel supplies, which are non renewable and finite
No Greenhouse Emissions Whilst In Operation
There is a carbon footprint for the manufacture of solar panels and solar energy equipment.
However, there is little to no greenhouse gas emissions whilst solar panels and other solar energy systems are in operation.
Additionally, these emissions might be negligible when compared to the GHGs emitted by other energy sources.
Solar energy might have one of the lowest carbon footprints amongst energy sources.
Does Not Release Air Pollutants Whilst In Operation
Solar panels for example do not release any form of air pollutants whilst in operation.
No Waste By-Products Whilst In Operation
Solar energy also doesn’t produce waste by-products whilst in operation
Coal on the other hand produces fly ash and other waste by-products
Nuclear energy also produces spent nuclear fuel, which is a form of nuclear waste.
No Refuelling Is Required, & Solar Energy Itself Is Free
Once a solar panel is set up, there is no refuelling process that needs to take place.
This is in comparison to coal power plants or nuclear reactors that need to be refuelled
Additionally, solar energy itself is free, unlike coal or uranium resources (which cost money)
Solar Energy Can Be Used Off Grid, Or Fed Into The Grid
Solar panels set up on private land can provide energy for use off the grid – both directly, and also stored (in a storage battery for example) to be used later.
Alternatively, solar energy can be generated and then fed back into the public power grid.
May Provide Some Level Of Energy Independence (For Both Countries, & Individuals)
Solar energy may provide some level of energy independence:
– Where a country uses domestically sourced solar energy to partially replace a % of other energy sources like natural gas that are mostly imported from other countries
As one example, some countries import a lot of their natural gas from other countries
– Where solar energy is generated privately and used for electricity, replacing a certain amount of electricity consumption from the public power grid
There’s Different Types Of Solar Energy Systems & Technology Available
Solar Energy Systems
Two different solar energy systems are Solar PV, and also Solar CSP.
Other Solar Energy Technology
Even solar PV has different technology available.
For example, monocrystalline solar panels might be the most efficient of the different types of solar panels.
Another example is solar PV silicone vs solar PV cadmium.
Some reports indicate solar PV silicone might be slightly more efficient, whilst other reports indicate that solar panels made using cadmium might use less energy and materials than silicone panels.
Solar Energy Systems & Technology Might Improve In Capability & Performance Over Time
Solar energy systems and technology might see different improvements over time
An increase in energy efficiency might be one example
The power output of solar panels could also be increased (using quantum physics research and advancements in nanotech)
Different countries are also investing more money into solar technology development, which might lead to improvement
Countries like China for example have heavily invested in installed capacity of renewable energy like solar.
Additionally, individual companies are working technology that may support renewables like solar. For example, companies like Tesla have worked on storing excess solar energy in a cheaper way
Several Factors May Lead To Cheaper Solar Energy In The Future
Those factors might include:
– Companies are working to make solar energy more affordable
– Higher demand for solar might mean economies of scale helps decrease costs for solar technology and solar energy
Is A Portable Energy Source
Solar panels come in all shapes, sizes and types.
Some solar panels are fully portable and transportable – they can set up in one place, then picked up or packed up, and transported or moved to be set up in another location
Some panels can be used ‘on the go’ while walking, riding, driving, or moving in some other way
Is Versatile Both In Terms Of Installation, & Range Of Uses
Solar panels can be installed in a number of different ways, and can be used for a number of different things.
For example, they can be installed on the ground, on buildings (on walls, or roofs), on vehicles, and in a range of other locations.
They can be used for applications like camping, hiking, and a range of other outdoor uses
They can be used in urban areas, or more remote areas
Solar panels can also be used for a range of products and items – like houses, cars, mobile phones, and more.
This makes solar energy quite versatile
Might Have Low Maintenance Requirements In Some Instances
Solar panels do require cleaning for basic maintenance
But, residential solar panels for example might only require cleaning once, or maybe twice per year.
Solar Farms May Have A Shorter Lead Time To Build Than Power Plants Such As Nuclear Power Plants
Not taking into consideration design and pre planning …
Some large ground based solar farms might take anywhere from 3 months to a few years to build
In comparison, various reports indicate that the lead time on the construction of a new nuclear power station might be 7 to 10 years on average
Solar also has the benefit of setting up as many or as little panels as is preferred
It’s easy to set up in stages or in increments
This is in comparison to a nuclear plant or a coal plant, where the entire plant or reactor has to be built.
Distribution & Modular Set Up May Provide Certain Benefits
Solar is usually distributed across a wide geographical area, and is modular with several individual panels or panel farms.
This might mean there is less chance of disruption to electricity supply in the case of damage to equipment from extreme weather or a natural event, as energy generation isn’t concentrated to one power plant or reactor like it might be with coal energy or nuclear energy
Hurricane Sandy had [the impact of] … power loss and damage … on fossil fuel plants in New York and New Jersey, but not as much on renewable energy projects (ucsusa.org)
May Use Land More Efficiently In Some Instances
Solar energy may be more efficient with land use in the following instances:
– When the space between solar panels is utilised for other land uses
– When solar panels are used on buildings (so there’s multiple land uses at once)
Although, some reports indicate that solar panels that are installed on upwards structures like buildings instead of being installed outwards across land (like at solar farms) may decrease the efficiency of the solar panel in some instances
Solar energy may also be more land efficient when taking the following things into account with land use calculations:
– Solar energy might use less total land space than some fossil fuels when upstream and downstream land use are taken into account (especially for mining, gas pipelines, energy infrastructure, and so on)
– The land used by a solar panel farm might be able to be re-used after it ceases to be used for a solar panel farm
May Have A Small Water Footprint Whilst In Operation Compared To Some Other Energy Sources
Solar thermal with wet cooling can use a lot more water though
May Not Have The Same Price Fluctuations As Some Fossil Fuels
The prices of different fossil fuels can be volatile, and can fluctuate over time (especially in response to some major global events)
Some reports indicate that renewable energy might be more stable
Renewable energy can be much more stable in some places because of stable operating costs (ucsusa.org)
Solar Energy May Be More Predictable Than Wind Energy Specifically
The Sun rising and setting might be relatively predictable
There can be a lot more uncertainty on the other hand in predicting wind patterns
Residential Solar Setups May Present Several Benefits
Potential Cost Savings
Whether home solar setups are a net cost saving or net financial loss depend on a range of different factors.
But, in some instances, they may end up delivering a net cost saving over a certain time period compared to using solely grid fed electricity.
Potential Cons Of Solar Energy
Low Power Density & Power Output
Compared to nuclear, oil, and gas, solar has a much lower power density, and power output per unit.
Solar may not have the capability right now to provide power to something more energy intensive, or something with greater total energy requirements – such as energy intensive industries and sectors, or larger towns and cities.
Might Have A Poor Capacity Factor Compared To Some Other Energy Sources
One report indicates that solar has one of the lowest capacity factors amongst all energy sources
Nuclear appears to have a much higher capacity factor than solar
May Not Be Suitable Right Now For The Largest Or Greatest Scales Of Energy Generation, Or As A City’s Predominant (Or Sole) Energy Source
Solar energy may lack the traits and performance right now:
– For providing energy for the most energy intensive applications
– For providing energy to towns and cities with the greatest total energy requirements
– To be the predominant or sole energy source that a city or town relies upon
Power density, and the variable/intermittent nature of solar energy, may be two key limitations for solar energy.
Additionally, some cities and towns may currently lack the infrastructure to properly integrate some newer energy sources (i.e. non fossil fuel based energy sources)
Can Be Dependent On Exposure To, & Intensity Of Sunlight
Solar generally relies on exposure to the sun, and also the intensity of the sun.
It may not be suitable geographically for places with little sun, or places with weak sun intensity.
It may not be suitable for colder climates especially.
Solar energy may also not be available during colder months of the year or months (and days) with less sun or no sun.
Is Considered A Variable/Intermittent Energy Source
Because solar generally relies on sun exposure, there will be times of the day when energy isn’t being captured.
When energy isn’t being captured, solar energy can’t provide a consistent energy supply.
This is referred to as variability, or as intermittency in providing a power supply.
Variability and intermittency may impact the reliability of solar energy.
Variability/intermittency may also mean that solar has to use a backup energy source (potentially to meet baseload), and/or use batteries for energy storage.
The impact of variability on grid stability might need to be considered too.
Other energy sources like coal or nuclear for example aren’t variable energy sources.
Solar can’t produce consistent baseload at all, while it peaks at the wrong time [… whilst] The wind is better [than solar] for baseload, since there’s always wind blowing somewhere, but it [still] only produces whatever the weather [delivers …] (dailymaverick.co.za)
May Have Issues With Meeting Demand Peaks (& General Energy Demand Profiles) Of Certain Cities & Towns
Each city or town has an ‘energy demand profile’
This profile is made up of factors like their average energy demand, their peak energy demand, and so on
Energy sources that make up a city or town’s energy mix need to be suitable for this energy demand profile
They need to be able to meet the average energy demand of that city or town, but also be capable of meeting peaks in energy demand (on certain days throughout the year)
A few issues with solar energy in particular when it comes to meeting a city or town’s energy demand profile is that:
– It may not be able to meet average energy demand on it’s own
Regular energy demand might not be able to be met by solar energy in colder months of the year when the sun is not out
– It may not be able to meet peaks in energy demand on it’s own
Solar energy may actually peak in energy supply on a day when there is the most sunlight, rather than a day when energy demand itself is higher
There’s also a problem where energy demand might peak later in the day, or on a particular night – both times when the sun might be starting to go down, or might have fully gone down
To say this another way – energy demand may peak at a different time than when energy supply from solar energy peaks
Other energy sources that provide a more consistent or reliable energy supply might be better for meeting the energy demand profile for a greater number of cities and towns – at least with less support or help from other energy sources.
dailymaverick.co.za discusses how (paraphrased) energy sources need to have power availability to match the demand profile of a city or town in greater detail in their report
May Sometimes Rely On Backup Energy Sources, & Also Batteries For Energy Storage
– Backup Energy Sources
Because solar energy can’t always generate adequate energy by itself (because there isn’t enough sun, or for another related reason), it may have to use backup energy sources (like natural gas, as one example – this energy source can ramp up and down) to help it in doing so.
There may be an additional cost for solar energy to use a backup energy source in a power grid – this additional cost may increase the cost to supply electricity, and increase electricity prices in some instances (if this additional cost has to be passed onto the consumer)
– Batteries For Energy Storage
Where solar energy doesn’t provide a consistent energy supply (due to it’s variability and intermittency), it may need to use energy storage in the form of batteries.
Solar energy can send excess energy to batteries when there is surplus energy (based on the energy being generated vs the energy being used), and this energy can be used at a later time when solar isn’t generating an adequate energy supply.
Solar and wind as variable energy sources require batteries to store and use energy later on.
For larger scale power production, these batteries can be energy intensive to make, and can be extremely costly.
There’s also the issue of recycling batteries, or disposing of them to consider
Batteries might also require the use of precious metals to make
Grid Integration May Be An Issue That Needs To Be Addressed In Some Countries
Some countries have experienced issues integrating installed solar energy capacity (and other installed renewable energy capacity) into the main power grid in the past
This can lead to other issues like losing generated power before it can be fed into the grid
May Lead To More Expensive Electricity Prices In Some Instances
A few factors to consider with renewables and electricity prices:
– There’s a range of factors that aren’t all related to renewable energy that can impact electricity prices
– But, solar energy may in some instances contribute to more expensive electricity prices
Also, compared to other alternative energies, some reports indicate that specifically the price per kilowatt for solar might be expensive
Return On Initial Investment Might Take Time
For both residential and commercial/industrial solar panel setups, there’s a setup cost, and also an operational cost
Taking into consideration these costs, and other financial factors, the time to get to breakeven, or to get a return on the initial investment may vary
It could be a number of years in some instances.
Several variables such as the setup cost, incentive schemes, tax credits, feed in tariffs, and so on, can all impact these calculations
May Use Land Less Efficiently When Considering Power Density
This might be referred to as the ‘space to output ratio’
Solar farms are built ‘outwards’ over a larger land area than solar panels that are built ‘up’ by putting them on buildings and other structures or objects
Lifespan Of Solar Panels May Be Shorter Than The Lifespan Of Some Other Energy Sources
Some reports indicate that the industry standard lifespan for a solar panel is around 25-30 years
In comparison:
Some nuclear reactors might have a lifespan of around 40 years, and potentially up to 80 years
Coal plants might have a lifespan of anywhere from 30 to 46 years on average
Solar Panels Might Use Rare Materials
Cadmium telluride and copper indium gallium selenide are examples of some rare materials that might be used in solar panels
They might be far rarer than the materials used in some of the equipment for coal and fossil fuels.
Solar Panels Might Requires More Construction Material Than Nuclear, & May Generate More Waste
Not only is there a resource footprint to consider here, but, also a waste footprint, and potentially an associated environmental footprint too.
Regarding specifically waste, forbes.com mentions:
… solar panels create 200 – 300 times more hazardous waste than nuclear, with none of it required to be recycled or safely contained outside of the European Union …
Might Have A Larger Greenhouse Footprint Than Nuclear Energy
Solar power produces four times more GHGs than nuclear in total (dailymaverick.co.za)
Oil/Petroleum May Be Used To Make Some Solar Panels
A potentially surprising point about solar energy (that some people may not be aware of) might be that solar panels currently use oil/petroleum as a feedstock for the materials they use
For example:
– The crystalline silicone cells used in some solar panels rely on plastic polymers as a protective backing, and this plastic is made from petroleum
It’s worth mentioning though that in recent years, some companies have invested in the development of ‘Biopanels’ that don’t use fossil fuels in their production
Residential Solar Setups May Present Several Issues
Cost
Solar panel setups can cost thousands of dollars to setup/install – sometimes in the tens of thousands of dollars range (or more).
With this being the case, a solar panel setup may sometimes end up costing more money than it saves.
Additionally, the upfront cost may sometimes price some people out of affording solar energy.
Issues For The Stability Of Some Existing Electricity Grids Without The Use Of Batteries
In some cities or towns, home solar setups feeding electricity back into the grid may affect grid stability.
However, batteries may help address this problem.
From abc.net.au:
[In Australia,] Victoria’s energy grid … wasn’t designed to cope with a system where each house can feed its own electricity back into the network … [via renewable energy solar setups]
It [hurts] the stability of the grid … particularly in the mid-afternoon where there’s very low demand
[However,] smart household batteries will solve many of the problems
There May Be Challenges With Recycling Solar Panels In Some Places
Those challenges might include:
– Some of the materials used in solar panels might be recyclable, whilst others might not be
– Recycling options for solar panels might be limited in some cities and towns
– The process of stripping a solar panel and sorting the materials might be time consuming, and costly i.e. it might not be economically feasible yet
Sources
1. https://www.renewableresourcescoalition.org/solar-energy-pros-cons/
2. Various ‘Better Meets Reality’ guides
3. https://www.ucsusa.org/clean-energy/renewable-energy/public-benefits-of-renewable-power
4. https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2019-08-13-mantashe-is-right-south-africa-must-build-more-nuclear-energy/
5. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-26/victorias-renewable-energy-boom-could-burn-electricity-market/10405210
6. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffmcmahon/2018/10/01/3-reasons-nuclear-reactors-are-more-expensive-in-the-west-hint-its-not-regulation/#1237136f5d1a
7. https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelshellenberger/2018/05/08/we-dont-need-solar-and-wind-to-save-the-climate-and-its-a-good-thing-too/#6c6732fae4de
8. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/03/solar-wind-power-renewable-energy-climate-change/
9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_impact_of_electricity_generation
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