Photovoltaic (PV) Panel Waste Volumes

Photovoltaic (PV) Panel Waste Volumes

Summary

Beyond general waste regulations, various approaches have been specifically developed to manage end-of-life photovoltaic panel waste. In this series of articles, value creation from photovoltaic panels that have completed their operational lifetime is summarized. At each stage of the value chain, particularly at the end-of-life stage, there are opportunities to create value from which we can benefit from PV panel waste. This article addresses opportunities related to reducing material consumption, repair and reuse options, and finally considerations regarding the recycling and processing of PV panel waste.

Removal and Recycling of Photovoltaic (PV) Panels

Photovoltaic (PV) panel removal and processing have important implications for the types and sizes of installed PV systems in terms of future waste management. In particular, the proliferation of dispersed, small-scale rooftop PV systems may add significant costs to operations such as removal, collection and transportation of old PV panels. On the other hand, waste management is logistically simpler for large-scale public-use PV applications. Collection of PV panels can be divided into two different scenarios depending on their size and geographic location: • Public-scale (> 100 kilowatts - kW) systems: Generally installed with regular maintenance and monitoring. Panels may be mounted on aluminum or steel racks or concrete foundations. The electrical system relies on a grid connection with string or central inverters. In some cases, energy storage systems may also be present, and these storage systems may be based on lithium-ion batteries, lead-acid batteries or other technologies. For large facilities, competition among actors performing dismantling leads to high cost efficiency. Dismantling, packaging, transportation and recycling operations can easily be performed through subcontractors for system components or entire systems. Dismantling and transportation services are typically defined during contractor tendering processes and are supervised and performed by experienced workers. Tendering processes may include dismantling of the entire facility or part of it depending on the intended post-area use. In this case, it can be assumed that relatively high quality standards will be applied. Components of the PV facility will be stored separately: panels, cables, electronic equipment (inverters, charge controllers, transformers, monitoring electronics, etc.), metals (aluminum, steel), typical building and construction demolition waste, etc. The quantities of different waste types are relatively high, and these wastes can be easily collected separately and at reasonable cost and transported to specialized recycling facilities or landfill areas. Depending on local regulations, some components—typically such as certain batteries or power transformers—may be classified as hazardous or toxic waste. • Dismantling costs for smaller installations (5-100 kW): Dismantling costs for such installations may vary depending on the type of PV system (ground-mounted, building-integrated, rooftop, etc.) and its location. Dismantling of small PV installations may require experienced workers such as roofers and electricians. Individual panels, small residential single-panel systems (< 500 W) or other small systems (< 5 kW) may enter the recycling process through take-back or collection services. In such cases, logistics costs may affect the overall cost of take-back and recycling systems. Different waste types may be sent to recycling facilities or landfill areas depending on local regulations and the availability of specialized waste management companies. IRENA's REmap study projects that by 2030 rooftop installations will have system sizes ranging from several kilowatts to megawatts and will reach a total installed capacity of 580 GW. However, larger-scale (mostly ground-mounted) public applications will constitute a larger share of total installed capacity, at 1,180 GW (See Figure 1). [caption id="attachment_157390" align="aligncenter"] Figure 1. Estimated Rooftop and Public-Scale PV Development in 2030 Compared to 2015[/caption] In our next article we will continue with the topic of PV panel decommissioning and processing (recycling). Wishing you healthy days…   Dr. Cemil Koyunoğlu, Associate Professor Department of Energy Systems Engineering Faculty of Engineering Yalova University