Do Solar Panels Decay?

Yes.

Silicon ones have lasted for decades (we're talking 50yrs+ here), but most cells are guaranteed for somewhere between 20&30 yrs.

I've been working on thin film cadmium telluride ('CdTe') solar panels this year and my research has been on testing ways to help reduce this decay. Ways they decay include things like:

1) glass gets scratched and smudged, which reduces light getting in (easily fixed for most of the time!)

2) Bits of air can leak into the cell and slowly oxidise part of the cell.

3) Constant heating/cooling and diffusion means that atoms can slowly move around in the lattice, which breaks up the junction they rely on.

4) In thin film cells, one of the biggest problems is how they're very thin and they have boundaries between their crystals. Metals from the back contact (the electrode that takes out the electricity) can diffuse through the cell and reach the junction. If they get to the junction, they act as 'recombination centres' - they catch the charge that was generated by light and that means you can't use it for electric power.

Our cells degrade pretty quickly right after they're made, then they become pretty stable at around 9-13% efficiency. FirstSolar, one of the biggest solar power companies, uses CdTe and they guarantee for 20yrs iirc.

Solar panels have a lifetime of around 20-25 years. They are mostly constructed of silicon, glass, and aluminium, so although these materials don't decay rapidly (except perhaps aluminum) all these materials are recyclable.

Sounds like there are some nasty toxins involved in the construction process of PV cells though. Recycling is definitely the way to go.

I am sure that in due time the panels will decay. However well before that point they begin to drastically reduce their efficiency. Case in point the panels themselves will only operate at peak efficiency for the first 20-25 years of their lives.

the typical warranty given by solar panel manufactures is for a period of 25 - 30 years solar panels will certainly save you decent amount of money on the long run.

http://renewableenergyarticles.blogspot.com/2010/0...

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Well mostly everything decays over time...

http://www.ehow.com/facts_5879663_life-expectancy-...