What to do with growing older photo voltaic panels?
by Jennifer Nichols and Raven Wuebker for TAMU Information
School Station TX (SPX) Jan 26, 2025
The Nationwide Science Basis Convergence Accelerator Program has granted $5 million {dollars} to Part 2 of the undertaking “Securing crucial materials provide chains by enabling phOtovoltaic circuLARity (SOLAR).”
SOLAR’s objective is to proactively guarantee circularity of photo voltaic panels by offering options to boundaries all through the end-to-end provide chain. The intent is to make photo voltaic panels recyclable and discover a answer to remanufacturing them at a aggressive value. Attaining this can assist promote a clear and resilient power system in the US.
The three-year undertaking is led by Battelle Memorial Institute with associate organizations together with Texas A and M College’s Vitality Institute. The interdisciplinary workforce supplies the experience wanted to handle muti-faceted points associated to photo voltaic manufacturing provide chain resilience.
Texas A and M’s participation will likely be led by Texas A and M Vitality Institute’s affiliate director of Provide Chain Resilience and Sustainability and the Harvey Hubbell Professor of Industrial Distribution, Dr. Eleftherios Iakovou, with the director of the Texas A and M Vitality Institute and distinguished professor within the Division of Chemical Engineering, Dr. Stratos Pistikopoulos.
The Vitality Institute’s function in SOLAR is targeted on advancing reverse logistics fashions and next-generation data-driven provide chains particularly for recycling photo voltaic panels and reusing their crucial supplies, equivalent to silicon and silver.
“We’re enhancing the competitiveness of the U.S. photo voltaic manufacturing provide chain by retrieving uncommon earth minerals from photo voltaic panels which are decommissioned, both as a result of they break or have reached finish of life,” Iakovou stated. “These treasured uncommon earth minerals have the potential for use in different crucial and more and more reshored provide chains, growing a round economic system for photo voltaic panels, whereas additional enhancing the general resilience and sustainability of the nation’s power and manufacturing provide chains inside the new geopolitical panorama.”
In accordance with Pistikopoulos, transitioning the photo voltaic business in the direction of a round economic system by establishing sustainable recycling pathways for photo voltaic panels includes three core areas: sorting, upcycling, and logistics.
Sorting focuses on creating area guides, growing workforce abilities and deploying sensors for panel harm detection.
Upcycling is the restoration and purification of crucial supplies equivalent to silicon.
Logistics is the element accountable for creating user-friendly modeling instruments to streamline provide chain administration for recyclable supplies.
Collectively, these three core areas kind a complete strategy to handle the complicated challenges within the photo voltaic panel ecosystem.
“Our contribution emphasizes the event of reverse provide chain logistics and decision-making frameworks, facilitating a extra sustainable end-of-life administration,” Pistikopoulos stated. “By addressing complicated logistics and recycling challenges, we purpose to allow environment friendly pathways for re-integrating crucial supplies into the economic system.”
In the course of the subsequent three years, the SOLAR workforce will conduct yearly evaluations to evaluate progress. They may even combine new insights to make sure they construct on earlier findings from Part 1 whereas adapting to technological advances and market circumstances.
“The information, instruments, and applied sciences we’re growing right here will play a vital function in shaping a future the place photo voltaic power could be each renewable and round, finally contributing to a resilient and safe supplies provide chain for the U.S.,” Pistikopoulos stated. “As photo voltaic panel deployment continues to speed up, establishing a sustainable and economically viable end-of-life administration when it comes to lowering waste and regaining essential supplies is crucial.”
Associated Hyperlinks
Texas A and M University’s Energy Institute.
All About Solar Energy at SolarDaily.com
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