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Vizslaraptor t1_je3kxep wrote

Do we have an understanding of what happens to the solar panels when they become end-of-life waste? Genuinely curious about this but too lazy to search. (typical American cir. 2023?)

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Internal-Test-8015 t1_je3n4pj wrote

I'm fairly certain they van be recycled or at keadt most of the parts from them can and I'm sure that'll get better Over the years as more a d more research is done and further improvements are made.

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SandAndAlum t1_je3vxz7 wrote

It hasn't happened to any significant degree yet. The tiny fraction that do exist have historically been recycled for metals and low grade glass at a loss or landfilled.

Recycling supply chains are being built and most of the world now has recycling mandates where manufacturers or importers need to have a plan in place before sale. The glass can be used circularly, silver and bismuth/lead are reusable. The silicon is downcycled to steel alloying or similar industrial use. There has been lab scale amorphous PV built from only decomissioned monocrystalline PV -- it worked but has not been commercialised.

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danielravennest t1_je6w862 wrote

> The silicon is downcycled to steel alloying or similar industrial use.

There is no need to do that. Used solar cells are purer silicon than what comes out of carbothermal reduction of quartz sand to 98.5% pure silicon metal. So you can throw them into the process at that point. The reduction to metal is very energy intensive, so recycling will reduce the energy to make new panels.

They probably are not doing it yet because the volume is so low. Silicon steel is used in transformers and motors, and is even less picky about impurities. So they would just throw the old cells in.

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Si_shadeofblue t1_je3v9xw wrote

Yes they can be recycled but it isn't done on a large scale yet because arent may panels that have reached end of life yet.

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danielravennest t1_je6uwqm wrote

Nearly all of silicon solar panels can be recycled. The main materials are aluminum, glass, sometimes plastic, silicon metal, and copper. The effective life of a panel is 100 years, but none of them are that old yet. 99.9% are less than 22 years old, and 50% are less than 3 years old. So few are being recycled because they aren't old enough yet.

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