Midpoint Environmental Impact Assessments of Selected Microgrid Systems

This study compares life cycle assessment (LCA) profiles of solar and wind-based microgrid energy systems to assess their environmental performance. To this end, the OpenLCA software used data available in the ELCD 3.2 database. The analysis uses the ReCiPe 2016 Midpoint (E) approach to determine environmental impacts in 18 categories, considering the energy generation stages, upstream processes, raw material extraction, manufacturing, and component transport. The results show that the solar microgrid system outperforms the wind microgrid in most environmental impact categories. The global warming potential (GWP) of the solar microgrid is much less at 0.15311 kg CO₂ equivalent compared to 0.88678 kg CO₂ equivalent for the wind system. Similarly, the wind microgrid is characterized by higher values for categories such as fossil resource scarcity, particulate matter formation, and a variety of toxicity indicators, often 5–6-fold more than those of the solar system. An exception is registered in the category of scarcity of mineral resources, where the increased impact of the solar microgrid is documented, perhaps as a result of using resource-intensive materials in photovoltaic panels. Both systems demonstrate negative water consumption values, which are equivalent to net water savings compared to traditional grid-based generation. Nevertheless, the potential of water saving that is offered by the wind microgrid is only slightly higher. This comparative analysis gives essential insight into the sustainability of renewable microgrids, with a smaller environmental pawprint for solar-based systems. The results enable informed adoption decisions of clean distributed energy systems and confirm upstream material and technology decisions.