Life cycle analysis of a solar photovoltaic system in a Philippine university

Abstract

Renewable energy sources have been growing in popularity because of the Republic Act 9513, also known as the Renewable Energy Act 2008. With these, various universities in the Philippines have already installed solar photovoltaic (PV) systems. However, details such as carbon emissions reduction and the efficiency of PV systems in Philippine universities still need to be included as baseline data for policy formulation and sustainability. This study aims to evaluate the solar PVs installed at Saint Louis University as part of its climate change advocacy. The environmental Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach was conducted through the OpenLCA software with the Ecoinvent database. Results showed that the PV panels installed in the university are economically and environmentally beneficial, wherein the installed panels' break-even point and cost-benefit ratio are 7 years and 4.5, respectively. Through the cradle-to-grave analysis from manufacturing, transportation, installation, operation, and recycling, the solar PV system yielded an annual emission savings of 278,369 kg of CO2 equivalent. Moreover, the GHG emission payback period was only 2.22 years, with a 93% GHG reduction from utilizing solar PV systems instead of coal-fired power plants. With the summarized results of LCA, this paper hopes to contribute to the solar energy data on Energy Payback Time (EPBT) and GHG emission rates.