Photovoltaic panel recycling and processing equipment After the photovoltaic modules are retired, they go through five processing links: first, the modules are disassembled and transported to the processing agency; second, they are disassembled and the backplane and wires are removed; third, the modules are broken and the tempered glass on the outside is removed; fourth, pyrolysis is performed; and fifth, the valuable metals and silicon materials in the modules are taken out.
The recovery and reuse rates of solar-grade silicon are very low, so there is still a lot of room for improvement. Recycling silicon in photovoltaics is important for reducing carbon emissions, and research and development should be stepped up now so that the technology can be used for recycling and reuse markets when a large number of modules begin to be scrapped. Recycling and reusing solar-grade silicon can also reduce the impact of photovoltaic panels on the environment, as this material accounts for about half of the carbon footprint of the equipment. Technology to recover solar-grade silicon from used solar panels can change the module recycling market. If the recycling process can provide solar-grade silicon instead of metallurgical-grade silicon, the value of silicon recovery may be higher.
