Recycled solar panels recover valuable materials like glass, aluminium, silicon, copper and silver from end-of-life PV modules via dismantling and delamination.
This reduces waste, enables reuse and supports a closed-loop solar industry as early installations reach end of life.
Frames, junction boxes and wiring are removed
Glass is separated by mechanical, thermal (300–650 °C pyrolysis) or chemical delamination
Shredding and sorting (optical, air, magnetic, eddy current) isolate metals, glass and silicon
Silicon wafers are purified through acid etching; metals refined to reuse-grade
Residual polymers (EVA, backsheets) are treated or used for energy recovery
Recovered glass and aluminium retain high quality for reuse
Refined silicon can be reprocessed into photovoltaic-grade wafers
Copper and silver maintain conductivity after refining
Polymer recovery is more complex, with new thermal and chemical methods emerging to reclaim EVA and backsheets
Recycling prevents PV waste buildup, lowers mining and raw material demand and saves up to 90% of energy compared to virgin production
Up to 95% material recovery enables circular solar manufacturing
Regulations and extended producer responsibility accelerate adoption, creating new raw material streams and reducing supply chain risks
Solar industry: New PV module production from recovered silicon, glass, metals
Construction: Glass and aluminium for facades, windows, cladding
Electronics/industrial: Copper and silver for wiring and components