Table 1.
Materials that can Contribute to the Advancement of Renewable Energy.
| Materials | Uses | Literature | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solar Panels | ARSENIC | Gallium-arsenide semiconductors for solar cells are made using high-purity arsenic. | [[32], [33], [34], [35], [36]] |
| GALLIUM | used in copper-indium-gallium-diselenide thin-film solar cells and gallium-arsenide solar cells. | [34,[36], [37], [38], [39], [40]] | |
| GERMANIUM | Satellites frequently employ solar cells made of germanium. | [[41], [42], [43], [44], [45]] | |
| INDIUM | used in thin-film solar cells with copper, indium, gallium, and diselenide. | [36,39,40,46] | |
| TELLURIUM | a component of cadmium-tellurium thin-film solar cells. | [35,36,[47], [48], [49]] | |
| Wind Turbines | ALUMINUM | Most of a wind turbine's components, especially the nacelle, where wind energy is converted to electricity, are made of aluminum. | [29,[50], [51], [52], [53]] |
| RARE-EARTH ELEMENTS (neodymium) | Rare-earth elements make some of the planet's strongest and most effective magnets, allowing wind turbines to use lighter, more compact generators. | [[54], [55], [56], [57]] | |
| Batteries | COBALT | Cobalt is most commonly used in rechargeable battery electrodes on a global scale. | [23,58] |
| GRAPHITE | In many lithium batteries, graphite acts as the electrode. | [[59], [60], [61], [62], [63]] | |
| LITHIUM | Lithium has a long history in batteries and is still frequently used today. | [58,64,[64], [64], [65], [66], [67]] | |
| MANGANESE | In many lithium batteries, manganese acts as an electrode. | [[68], [69], [70], [71]] |