Signal Hill-based Ship & Shore Environmental Inc. recently added solar panels to its portfolio of pollution-abatement strategies and products.
Though the company has not announced a large contract to go with the news, it is courting potential clients. Ship & Shore, which manufactures a variety of equipment that captures factory emissions and helps companies develop eco-friendly operating processes, made the decision based on inquiries from various solar panel companies.
“In this sector, we saw a growth opportunity and started receiving a lot of calls,” said Anoosheh Oskouian, president and chief executive of Ship & Shore.
While solar panels are looked at as an environmentally friendly energy source, manufacturing them requires a lot of water and energy and the utilization of a variety of chemicals with delicate use and containment requirements, a fact that makes their disposal problematic.
By producing this abatement equipment, Ship & Shore aims to make it more feasible for manufacturers to set up shop in the United States — currently, most producers are based overseas, particularly in China. It may also make it easier to scale up production, Oskouian said.
“Any time you’re using a lot of chemicals over a certain amount, you have to capture it. You can’t just throw out the emissions to the atmosphere. The U.S. is very particular about that,” Oskouian said. “They need to have a completely environmentally friendly facility, so we are advising them on the ‘how to’ and capture what’s coming off of their processes.”
Recycling them can also be quite difficult, as it is often so complex for recyclers that the panels just end up in landfills anyway. Additionally, the growing manufacturing market and updated technology mean more users are replacing their panels well before the ends of their lifespans.
Ship & Shore’s products include a variety of regenerative thermal oxidizers, which convert numerous chemicals into carbon dioxide and water before releasing them. Those oxidizers have obvious application for solar panel manufacturers.
On top of the environmental benefits, the Inflation Reduction Act includes a variety of financial incentives for manufacturers that adopt cleaner technology.
