The solar energy boom has led to millions of solar panels being installed worldwide, creating a potential new source of metals and silicon when these panels reach the end of their life.
This emerging stream of material could impact future supply dynamics in the silicon and metals markets, according to Dr Jan-Philipp Mai, founder and chief executive officer of JPM Silicon GmbH.
Mai’s company is positioning itself to recover valuable materials from end-of-life solar panels.
“We take the whole panel and then dismantle it, recycle it layer by layer,” Mai said in a recent interview with Fastmarkets.
This process could introduce a new supply stream for these materials, potentially affecting market prices and availability.
What is green silicon?
The concept of “green silicon” is gaining traction, but its definition remains fluid. Mai identifies two main interpretations: recycled silicon from old solar panels, and silicon produced with low carbon emissions.
Circular Silicon, a part of the JPM Silicon group, recovers 80-95% silicon content from recycled panels, with impurities including aluminum, silver and copper. This is then refined to produce metallurgical-grade silicon with over 99% purity.
However, the current market for recycled silicon is small.
Solar panel recycling
Mai emphasized the challenges in achieving effective recycling, noting that traditional methods often fall short.
“The disadvantage with solar modules is that they can’t sort out precious metals like silver. They lose silver in the process, and only achieve a recovery or recycling rate of 85%, which is the legal minimum required by law in Germany and Europe,” Mai said.
“While they’ve technically met the requirement, valuable materials like silver are lost.”
Meanwhile, Circular Silicon specializes in refining silicon from various sources, including production waste and end-of-life solar modules. They produce metallurgical-grade silicon with a purity up to 99%, sold in powder form.
Mai highlighted the economic aspects of recycling: “If you have waste streams containing plastic or organic materials, you’d still need to pay to recycle it to dispose the plastics. If it’s pure – we get paid by Circular Silicon.”
According to Mai, this approach allows the companies to address the full spectrum of materials recovery in the solar industry, potentially leading to more sustainable practices in solar energy production.
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