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To facilitate the recovery and recycling of objects, it is necessary to rethink their design and make it easy decomposable; this was the starting point of the collaboration between theIndustrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI)a non-profit R&D organization based in Taiwan, United Renewable Energy (URE)the largest solar panel and solar cell manufacturer in Taiwan, and Sanfang Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.a producer of technology films.
The module developed it is almost completely recyclable and recovered materials such as silicon and glass can be reusedi, preventing the decommissioned photovoltaic modules from being broken or degraded.
ITRI’s R&D team estimated that the recycled value of retired PV modules could increase significantly, from approximately $18 million to $74 million per 1 GW, creating a new circular economy model for the solar industry. “ITRI Adopts Circular Design to Rebuild Conventional PV Modules”said its executive vice president, Alex YM Peng.
The redesign of the form started with a new encapsulant and considered the life cycle of electrical connectors, cells and panel brackets. The new encapsulating solution employs a double layer of thermosetting EVA/PO (ethylene-vinyl acetate and polyolefin) and of a thermoplastic elastomer to protect the cell. The double layer protects the solar unit from being broken during dismantling but can be easily removed, warming it up.
Dr. Peng pointed out that this innovation allows complete recycling of solar cells and glass platesfurthermore the high purity of the recovered silicon wafers greatly increases the value of the materialreducing the need for new raw materials.
With this technology it is estimated that the carbon emissions of photovoltaic products will be reduced by more than 50%. “This can strengthen the competitiveness of the solar energy industry to achieve net zero goals by 2050”Peng concluded.
The President and CSO of URE, Dr. Sam Hong, stated that the latest encapsulation material technology led to the creation of this easily demountable module, opening the doors of a sustainable circular economy to the photovoltaic sector.
The new solar panel is already been tested in Keelung Island, Penghu and southern France. As well as passing tests IEC 61215 and IEC 61730 and receive the certification of high safety and reliability by TÜV Rheinlandthe world’s leading independent certification and inspection services company, this technology is also expected to obtain Taiwan Voluntary Product Certification (VPC) in Q1 2023.
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