Evaluation of Life Cycle Environmental Impacts of Chemical Precursors Used in Perovskite Photovoltaics Manufacturing.

Lead halide perovskite photovoltaics (LHP PVs) have rapidly reached a record efficiency of 25.2%, positioning them to compete with current PV technologies developed over decades. Combined with their low fabrication costs, earth-abundant materials, and superior optoelectronic performance, LHP PVs are on track for near-future commercialization. Key challenges exist today to improve the module operational lifetime, scale up manufacturing, and derisk the presence of toxic lead. Devices fabricated with a mixed cation perovskite absorber layer such as cesium/methylammonium/formamidinium (Cs_xMA_yFA_1-x-yPbI₃) show longer operational stability and higher efficiency than the most-studied MAPbI₃. However, earlier life cycle assessment (LCA) literature based on lab scale analysis reported an outsized environmental impact for FA, raising concerns over commercializing high-performing compositions.

In this talk, we will present a comprehensive process-based LCA study that uses updated data sources, process scale-up concepts, and sensitivity analysis to build ex ante commercial-scale life cycle inventory models for perovskite precursors that can inform industrial manufacturing choices with more transparent and robust environmental analysis. We have found that the impacts between Cs/FA/MA across climate change, cumulative energy demand, and human toxicity categories are all similar to each other. Resource efficiency calculations reveal that cesium supply is enough for near future perovskite PV deployment. Process contribution analysis reveals that reducing synthesis solvent usage, for instance by adding a solvent recovery step, may reduce impacts. However, the impacts for precursors, including lead iodide, are already 1,000 times less than those of other module components like solar glass or flexible substrates. Therefore, selection of perovskite composition can be based on PV efficiency and operational stability, without additional constraints of environmental impact.