Trina Solar has given a new twist to the sustainability of the photovoltaic industry with the world’s first fully recycled silicon solar panel, demonstrating that it is possible to reuse them without compromising their efficiency.
Context. Solar panels last two to three decades before degrading significantly. The problem then is that they cannot be completely recycled or doing so is too expensive.
The aluminum frame is no problem: it is separated from the solar panel and reused. The protective glass of the photovoltaic cells can be 95% recycled. The silicon wafers are separated with a heat treatment at 500 ºC. The rest of the components are crushed or separated with chemical processes to obtain recyclable materials.
The novelty. The Chinese manufacturer Trina Solar has created the first fully recycled crystalline silicon photovoltaic panel. The secret lies in the 37 recycling technologies patented by its researchers, which allow the separation and reuse of silicon, aluminum, glass and also silver from modules that had been discarded to assemble a new functional and equally efficient panel.
Techniques include in-house developed release agents, chemical etching technologies to dissolve unwanted materials, and methods of extracting silver, one of the problem materials, through wet treatments. The researchers were able to reuse all valuable components from disused solar panels, a new sustainability milestone for the industry.
20.7% efficiency. Trina Solar’s 100% recycled solar panel is n-type with TOPcon (Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact) cells, one of the most promising technologies in silicon panels.
Despite the peculiarity of its construction, it has a power of more than 645 watts and a conversion efficiency of 20.7%, not far from traditionally manufactured solar panels, but still below the 25% achieved by TOPCon panels fresh from the factory.
Recycle and start again. With this data, Trina Solar has demonstrated that it is possible to reuse the most valuable materials from discarded solar panels without compromising the efficiency and power of the new panel.
It is an important achievement considering that many countries, including those in the European Union, require that 80% of solar panel materials be recycled. It is also a first step towards a world in which we do not have to extract more metals to make solar panels when the ones we have degrade.
Image | Trina Solar
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