I went to grad school just down wind from a petroleum refinery, I grew up in the hillside above steel mills and down wind from Donoroa PA (
http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/Rachel_Carson/crucible.htm).
The PV cell fab process is carried out in vacuum in a clean room with dopant levels (parts per 10 to the minus 17) of the toxics. The issue is NOT the total throughput of a fab -- but the through put of a deposition chamber. The relevant environmental issue is the volume of a single dep chamber during a single stage ---
not the total throughput and the amount of dopant in a single line between adjacent check valves.
MY PH.D IS IN CHEMICAL ENGINEERING - WHILE MOST OF MY CAREER WAS IN ALTERNATIVE AND RENEWABLE ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING -- I WORKED IN A PHOTOVOLTAIC CELL FAB FOR SOME OF THAT TIME ---- AND IN A CHIP FAB WHEN I WASN'T IN THE ENERGY FIELD. BEEN THERE - DONE THAT - DONE THE CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION AND THE MOLECULAR BEAM EPITAXY AND THE ION BEAM EPITAXY AND THE SPUTTERING AND THE PHOTO LITH AND THE E-BEAM LITH AND THE X-RAY LITH AND EVEN THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE ENGINEERING AND THE OSHA COMPLIANCE ENGINEERING -- AND THE "SUPREM" - NO "E" IN "SUPREM"- AND THE VERILOG AND THE VHDL. AND I STILL LIVE IN A CONDO COMPLEX WITHIN WALKING DISTANCE OF THREE FABSYour interest is appreciated,
"Coastie"
PhD (ChemE), PE (ChemE, Safety and Environmental Engr)
Three Years USCG - HazMat Specialist (Ports of Houston and New Orleans)
Published papers on HazMat and Industrial Toxicology - Chem Engr Progress