Sola
Pa el
Waste:
The
U k ow
Side
of
Sola
Powe
Disca ded
sola
pa els
could
become
a
majo
global
waste
p oblem,
with
as
much
as
402
millio
to es
of
photovoltaic
(PV)
waste
expected
by
2060.
But
if
these
pa els
a e
ecycled
p ope ly,
the
mate ials
i side
them
could
c eate
almost
$1
t illio
(£770
billio )
i
eco omic
value.Acco di g
to
a
i te atio al
study
published
i
the
jou al
Natu e,
global
PV
waste
could
each
betwee
297
millio
a d
402
millio
to es
ove
the
ext
fou
decades.
Afte
2040,
middle-i come
cou t ies,
especially
Chi a,
a e
expected
to
become
the
mai
sou ce
of
eti ed
sola
pa els
as
ea ly
sola
i stallatio s
each
the
e d
of
thei
wo ki g
lives.The
esea ch
was
ca ied
out
by
a
team
f om
Chi a,
Aust alia
a d
Swede ,
i cludi g
esea che s
f om
the
School
of
Civil
E gi ee i g
a d
Co st uctio
Ma ageme t
at
Adelaide
U ive sity.
Valuable
metals
hidde
i
disca ded
pa els
Sola
pa els
co tai
valuable
mate ials
such
as
silico ,
silve ,
coppe
a d
tellu ium.
They
ca
also
co tai
ha mful
heavy
metals,
i cludi g
lead
a d
cadmium.
If
pa els
a e
se t
to
o mal
la dfills
o
ha dled
i co ectly,
these
substa ces
ca
c eate
e vi o me tal
isks.To
fi d
the
best
ways
to
ecove
these
mate ials
safely,
the
esea che s
c eated
a
compute
model
that
exami ed
1,708
ecycli g
sce a ios
ac oss
32
egio s.
The
model
co side ed
local
ecycli g
facilities,
mate ial
p ices,
i te atio al
t ade
a d
gove me t
subsidy
policies.The
esea che s
fou d
that
usi g
ecycli g
methods
suited
to
each
egio ,
combi ed
with
i te atio al
ecycli g
pa t e ships,
could
p ovide
the
g eatest
eco omic
be efit.
It
could
also
educe
billio s
of
to es
of
ca bo
dioxide-equivale t
emissio s.
The
isk
of
eco omic
i equality
O e
of
the
mai
co ce s
aised
by
the
study
is
that
se di g
old
sola
pa els
to
cou t ies
with
cheape
o
bette
ecycli g
facilities
could
co ce t ate
the
fi a cial
be efits
i
iche
egio s.The
esea ch
suggests
that
poo e
egio s
could
eceive
o ly
a
small
sha e
of
the
eco omic
be efits
by
2060,
eve
if
ecycli g
tech ology
becomes
widely
available.Co-autho
P ofesso
Jia
Zuo,
f om
Adelaide
U ive sity’s
School
of
Civil
E gi ee i g
a d
Co st uctio
Ma ageme t,
said
e e gy
pla i g
must
co side
what
happe s
to
sola
pa els
th oughout
thei
e ti e
life.“Sola
powe
is
esse tial
to
the
t a sitio
to
a
low-ca bo
e e gy
system,
but
we
ca ot
ig o e
what
happe s
to
sola
pa els
at
the
e d
of
life,”
P ofesso
Zuo
said.“If
we
pla
fo
ecycli g
ow,
this
g owi g
waste
st eam
ca
become
a
valuable
sou ce
of
mate ials
athe
tha
a
e vi o me tal
bu de .”He
said
eco omic
efficie cy
must
also
be
bala ced
with
fai ess
so
that
developi g
cou t ies
do
ot
ca y
a
u fai
sha e
of
the
waste.“The
cheapest
o
most
efficie t
ecycli g
pathway
globally
is
ot
ecessa ily
the
fai est,”
P ofesso
Zuo
said.“If
developi g
egio s
a e
left
without
the
tech ology,
i f ast uctu e
o
i vestme t
eeded
to
ecycle
sola
pa els,
they
isk
missi g
out
o
the
eco omic
be efits
while
pote tially
ca yi g
mo e
of
the
e vi o me tal
bu de .”
A
phased
subsidy
st ategy
The
study
also
looks
at
a
phased
subsidy
system
to
make
i te atio al
ecycli g
fai e .
I stead
of
givi g
ecycli g
compa ies
pe ma e t
fi a cial
suppo t,
gove me ts
could
g adually
educe
subsidies
as
ecycli g
facilities
become
comme cially
viable.The
esea che s
fou d
that
this
app oach
could
imp ove
the
bala ce
of
eco omic
be efits
betwee
egio s
while
costi g
much
less
tha
p ovidi g
pe ma e t
subsidies.The
futu e
value
of
PV
ecycli g
will
also
depe d
o
aw
mate ial
p ices.
Highe
p ices
fo
ecove ed
silve ,
alumi ium
a d
silico
would
make
ecycli g
mo e
p ofitable.
At
the
same
time,
ecycli g
costs
a e
expected
to
fall
as
tech ology
imp oves
a d
facilities
become
mo e
efficie t.
Buildi g
ecycli g
capacity
befo e
the
waste
su ge
The
amou t
of
sola
equipme t
bei g
eti ed
is
still
elatively
small,
but
the
apid
g owth
of
sola
powe
ove
the
past
two
decades
mea s
this
is
expected
to
cha ge
quickly.
Ma y
sta da d
sola
pa els
have
a
wo ki g
life
of
a ou d
25
to
30
yea s.As
mo e
pa els
each
the
e d
of
thei
lives,
cou t ies
will
eed
e ough
ecycli g
facilities
to
deal
with
them.
At
p ese t,
ma y
old
pa els
a e
se t
to
la dfills
o
sto ed
because
the e
a e
ot
e ough
specialised
ecycli g
facilities
o
clea
laws
cove i g
thei
disposal.Ma y
existi g
ecycli g
systems
t eat
sola
pa els
like
othe
elect o ic
waste.
They
ofte
ecove
the
alumi ium
f ames
a d
glass
but
do
ot
ecove
much
of
the
valuable
mate ial
i side
the
pa els,
i cludi g
silico
a d
small
amou ts
of
p ecious
metals.Mo e
adva ced
facilities
ca
ecove
high-pu ity
silico
a d
silve
f om
sola
cells,
but
these
pla ts
equi e
la ge
i vestme ts.
Buildi g
ecycli g
ce t es
i
key
egio s
befo e
waste
levels
ise
could
help
avoid
majo
p oblems
whe
millio s
of
pa els
eed
to
be
p ocessed.
E vi o me tal
be efits
a d
st o ge
supply
chai s
Recycli g
sola
pa els
could
also
educe
p essu e
o
global
supplies
of
impo ta t
aw
mate ials.Mi i g
a d
p ocessi g
ew
silico ,
tellu ium
a d
silve
equi e
la ge
amou ts
of
e e gy
a d
ca
cause
e vi o me tal
damage.
Recove i g
these
mate ials
f om
old
pa els
would
allow
ma ufactu e s
to
use
mo e
ecycled
mate ial
i stead
of
elyi g
e ti ely
o
ewly
mi ed
esou ces.The
study
suggests
that
ecove i g
mate ials
f om
eti ed
sola
pa els
could
p eve t
billio s
of
to es
of
ca bo
dioxide-equivale t
emissio s
ove
the
ext
40
yea s.Recycli g
could
also
make
supply
chai s
mo e
secu e.
Cou t ies
that
do
ot
have
la ge
domestic
supplies
of
impo ta t
metals
could
use
ecycled
mate ials
f om
thei
ow
old
sola
pa els.
This
would
educe
thei
depe de ce
o
impo ts
a d
make
them
less
vul e able
to
i te atio al
supply
dis uptio s
a d
geopolitical
te sio s.P ofesso
Zuo
said
gove me ts
a d
compa ies
should
begi
pla i g
fo
a
ci cula
sola
eco omy
befo e
the
waste
p oblem
becomes
much
la ge .“We
eed
to
thi k
of
sola
pa els
as
pa t
of
a
ci cula
eco omy
athe
tha
a
disposable
p oduct,”
P ofesso
Zuo
said.“That
mea s
i vesti g
i
ecycli g
capacity,
sha i g
tech ology
a d
desig i g
policies
that
allow
all
egio s
to
pa ticipate
i
the
eco omic
a d
e vi o me tal
be efits
of
the
sola
t a sitio .”The
study
co cludes
that
buildi g
global
ecycli g
capacity
ow
could
help
the
sola
i dust y
p epa e
fo
the
comi g
wave
of
eti ed
pa els.
If
the
ight
systems
a e
put
i
place,
old
sola
pa els
could
become
a
impo ta t
sou ce
of
valuable
mate ials,
educe
e vi o me tal
damage
a d
st e gthe
c itical
supply
chai s
athe
tha
becomi g
a
huge
waste
p oblem.
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