solar panel recycling

Japan’s Shintora Kosan has developed a novel water jet technology to recover glass from end-of-life PV modules. It says it can pulverize the solar cells and the backsheets without damaging the glass.

A team of researchers from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) has proposed a novel cost-effective way to recycle silicon solar panels. Their process consists of module deframing, laminate shredding and material concentration using electrostatic separation, reducing their original weight by 2% to 3%.

Led by German research institute Fraunhofer ISE, the consortium has built the solar cells with 100% crystalline silicon recycled from end-of-life photovoltaic panels. The silicon is recycled through a technique conceived by German specialist Reiling GmbH & Co. KG and the Fraunhofer Center for Silicon Photovoltaics CSP.

The PV industry can’t claim to be a clean energy source if it leaves a trail of hazardous waste.

An extensive European Commission regulation has set the bar on those economic activities deemed to help in the war against global heating and, by implication, those which may hinder the effort.

Compared to other techniques based on chemical reactors and organic solvents, the proposed method is said to be able to maintain a “good mechanical yield” in the recovered solar cells. According to its creators, this technique allows the reuse of silicon from the recycled panels in the production of new solar cells.

In February, non-profit EU solar panel recycling body PV Cycle announced it had collected 5,000 tons of modules in France, of which 94.7% could be recycled. A reader asked us about the remaining 5.3% and here, PV Cycle’s communications manager, Bertrand Lempkowicz, responds.

The solar industry faces many challenges in its move to become truly sustainable and that goal is imperative, rather than being simply a luxury, if the sector is to achieve terawatt scale. pv magazine’s first Sustainability Roundtable took place on June 10 and included discussion as to why sustainability matters in PV and which business, regulatory and technological approaches can be applied to achieve truly “green” solar power. A video of the event can be streamed online.

Researchers in Australia have conducted a ‘cradle to grave’ life cycle assessment (LCA) of the four most widely used PV technologies. The academics say that cadmium telluride solar modules have the lowest life cycle impact, followed by amorphous, multi and monocrystalline silicon products.

France’s National Institute for Solar Energy takes a look at the state of play in the European solar panel recycling industry.