Consider the following critical minerals: I. Neodymium II. Tellurium III. Dysprosium IV. Gallium. Which of the above minerals are not used in the production of photovoltaic cells used in solar panels?
Answer
The correct answer is C: I and III. Tellurium is a key component of CdTe (cadmium telluride) thin-film solar cells, and gallium is used in CIGS (copper-indium-gallium-selenide) and GaAs solar cells — so II and IV are USED in photovoltaics. Neodymium and dysprosium are rare-earth elements used primarily in high-strength permanent magnets (NdFeB magnets) for…
A.I and IV
B.II and III
C.I and III✓ Correct
D.II and IV
Explanation
Tellurium is a key component of CdTe (cadmium telluride) thin-film solar cells, and gallium is used in CIGS (copper-indium-gallium-selenide) and GaAs solar cells — so II and IV are USED in photovoltaics. Neodymium and dysprosium are rare-earth elements used primarily in high-strength permanent magnets (NdFeB magnets) for wind turbines, electric vehicle motors and electronics — they are not used in the photovoltaic cells of solar panels. Hence I and III are not used in PV cells.
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