PROCESS OF SOLAR PANEL RECYCLING

Solar panels have a service life of 20-30 years. With the increase in the number of solar panels used, the wasted panels will be very much after the end of their life. Solar panel recycling is still in its early stages, but as the market continues to evolve, this process will play an important role. Solar energy is cheaper and eco-friendly, but it is important to note that crystalline silicon solar panels will usually decrease significantly in energy production around 30 years.

More and more panels are ending their useful life each year. Experts even predict that the earth will have 80 million tons of solar panel waste by 2050. Currently, outdated solar panels are starting to become a problem because most of them end up in landfills, where this waste can be harmful to the environment and human health.

There are several ways to recycle solar system: reuse, mechanical, or chemical recycling. Each of these methods has its advantages and disadvantages. It will most likely get used in the recycling industry as time goes on.

1. Reusing Solar Panels

Reusing here is a different solution to the solar panel waste problem. Reusing is an attractive recycling method for solar panels because it requires very little processing. But old solar panels will usually produce less energy than new ones. They cannot be used as solar power plants. Recycling is needed to solve the problem of solar panel waste in the long term.

Reusing solar panels for off-grid applications still makes sense because there is no need to generate highly efficient electricity with the latest technology. It also applies to small-sized solar chargers such as for signs on the highway. Otherwise, the used or refurbished panels will not generate enough electricity to be used as part of a larger solar panel.

2. Mechanical Recycling

One of the recycling methods for solar panels is mechanical recycling. It is a recycling process category that involves physically breaking solar panels into several components. A mechanical recycling process may remove aluminum from the panels and then grind the remaining glass, silicon, wires, and various metals into a “glass cullet” mixture. Sometimes it is used as a building material.

Some companies also use this mechanical method to get more out of the panels than just the aluminum frame. It takes more time and precision, but we can use machines to separate the smaller parts of the solar panels.

Benefit Solar Panel Recycling Facilities

3. Chemical Recycling

The most attractive type of solar panel is chemical or thermal recycling. Whereas mechanical recycling is limited by how well a process can physically separate the different components, chemical recycling uses reactions at the molecular level in solar panels. For example, ROSI Solar uses a chemical process to extract tiny silver wires that carry electricity through silicon cells in working for solar panels.

4. Silicon-Based Solar Panel Recycling

The silicon-based PV panel recycling process starts with disassembling the actual product to separate the aluminum and glass parts. Almost 95% of the glass is reusable, whereas all outer metal parts are used to form the cell frame money. The waste material is processed at 500° in a thermal processing unit to facilitate bonding between the cell elements. The extreme heat will leave silicon cells ready for further processing. The supporting technology ensures that no plastic is wasted so that it is reused as a heat source for further thermal processing.

After thermal treatment, the green hardware is physically separated. 80% of this can be reused easily, while the rest will be refined. Wafers or silicon particles are scratched using acid. The damaged wafers are then melted down to be used again to manufacture new silicon modules resulting in an 85% recycling rate of the silicon material.

5. Thin Film Based Solar Panel Recycling

Thin film-based solar panels are processed more drastically. The first step is to put it in a paper shredder. Then the hammermill ensures that all the particles are no bigger than 4-5mm. It is the measure at which the laminate that keeps the inner material from breaking can be removed. What remains is solid and liquid material. The separation process uses a rotating screw. The substantial part rotates inside the tube while the liquid drips into the container.

The liquid goes through a precipitation and dewatering process to ensure purity. The resulting substance goes through metal processing to separate the different semiconductor materials. The final step depends on the technology used when producing the panels, but 95% of the semiconductor materials are reused.

Solids are contaminated with an interlayer material, lighter in mass, and can be removed by vibrating surfaces. Finally, the material goes through rinsing. The rest is pure glass. It saves 90% of glass elements for remanufacturing.

How long do solar panels usually last?

-Most solar panels are designed to last about 25 to 30 years, although newer models claim to last 40 to 50 years.

How much does it cost to recycle solar panels?

-The cost of recycling solar panels varies between $10 and $30 per module. Subsidies often help offset the cost.