A Proactive Approach to the Recovery and Recycling of Photovoltaic Modules

Solutions developed

A pilot line will demonstrate advanced separation and purification techniques to process 40 tonnes of PV waste. Innovations include a continuous sonification-based etching process for the sequential extraction of silicon, silver, copper, and other metals. Material streams are segregated by glass composition to enable the recovery of high-quality glass, while used etchants are regenerated within a closed-loop system to minimise secondary waste. Silicon will be refined to ≥99.9999% purity for PV-grade ingot production. The project also introduces blockchain-based Digital Product Passports (DPPs) and an online marketplace to support traceability and secondary use of components.

Main results

The developed process achieves a substantial increase in material recovery rates, from 18% to 93%, validating the technical and economic viability of high-yield PV recycling. Recovered silicon is used to grow new ingots and fabricate 20 PERC, 10 tandem, and 30 m² of single-junction perovskite modules. These demonstrators incorporate circular design principles, facilitating disassembly and future recycling, and serve as proof of concept for closing the loop in PV manufacturing.