The Life of a Solar Panel
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Solar Panel Recycling Workshop Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition May 19, 2010 OneRecycling company’s questions experience 2 What is SolarWorld? What is its recycling experience? Where does recycling stand in the USA? What might you ask about takeback in purchasing solar? What else might you ask? One of several refurbished buildings of a historical waterworks in Bonn that now house headquarters of holding company SolarWorld AG. SolarWorld in the world Single product, mission: Crystalline solar power. Vertically integrated photovoltaics – polysilicon, crystal, wafers, cells, modules, systems, projects. 1 billion euros ($1.4 billion) in sales; 2,700-plus employees. Factories/ventures in Germany, USA, South Korea, Qatar. SolarWorld in the USA Largest U.S. manufacturer of solar technology. Pioneered U.S. photovoltaic manufacturing since 1975. Plants in Hillsboro, Ore.; Camarillo, Calif.; Vancouver, Wash. Hillsboro: 500 MW, 1,000 employees, $500 million. Hillsboro site (U.S. headquarters) comprises former chip fabrication plant (right) and new building constructed in 2009. All four steps of PV manufactur- ing take place here. Bringing product full cycle SolarWorld recycling in Europe started 2001. World’s first recycling site in Freiberg, Germany (2003). Co-founded PV Cycle consortium in Europe to establish high- value recycling exceeding 85 percent by weight (2007). Announced recycling in USA in 2006. U.S. policy in development; low end-of-life returns. Recycling highlights Reprocessing plant recycles 1,600 tons of silicon a year. Recycling recaptures 90 percent by weight of module materials. Modules of recycled wafers save 30 % on production energy. Process steps Emission-controlled, heat-trapping incineration to remove EVA laminate, release component parts. Manual disassembly/sorting of components – metals, glass, silicon. Separation, treatment, pulverization of silicon in cells for re-use/remelt in new wafers. Third-party recycling/reuse of component aluminum, glass, copper. Karsten Wambach, Solar- World’s recycling pioneer and president of PV Cycle, leads a tour of the recycling operation he built in Freiberg, Germany. Example: Chevetogne, Belgium, 2009 SolarWorld recycles 63-kilowatt system installed in 1983: 1,876 modules, 460 by 800 mm, double glass. 36 4-inch round cells. Aluminum frame, silver metallization, soldered interconnectors and EVA lamination. Glass: 66 % Aluminum: 18 % Plastics 10 % Cells: 3 % Junction box: 2 % Copper: 1 % Chevetogne outcomes Recycling yields by module component materials COMPONENT Input / Relative Output / Yield PARTS module amount module (%) (kg) (%) (kg) Glass 5.93 65.82 5.75 96.96 Plastic 0.94 10.43 -- -- Cells 0.26 2.89 0.22 84.62 Copper 0.9 1.00 0.07 77.78 Aluminum 1.58 17.54 1.58 100.00 J-box 0.21 2.33 -- TOTAL 9.01 100.00 7.62 84.57 U.S. outlook for returns Demand calculation from pv recycling, llc* 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 Total Modules Collected - 11,677 23,616 29,333 36,176 43,691 51,929 61,442 71,787 Cumulative Modules Collected - 11,677 35,293 64,626 100,801 144,493 196,421 257,863 329,650 Figure 1: Silicon Module Manufacturing Locations & kW Installed by State 6 in Phoenix PV Capacity Data Sources: “Total Grid Connected PV Capacity (1993-2008)”, Company Location Interstate Renewable Energy Council, Larry Sherwood Interstates April 2009 State boundary and Interstate spatial layers, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, National Transportation Atlas Database 2008 *Source: pv recycling compilation and analysis based on data from GreenTech Media, Interstate Renewable Energy Council, EPIA/BSW. U.S. recycling procedural/policy considerations Disassembly -- dismantling, palletization, packing. Transport, both for collection and for reprocessing. Storage. Labeling -- policy and contact information. Marketing -- consumer how-to information. Balance of system – inverters, conduit, racking. Product disassembly. Recycling standards -- process and verification. Fees – amounts, methodologies, responsibilities. Examples of recycling-specific questions Is product hazardous waste under state and U.S. law? Will manufacturer take back and recycle product? What is the process? Is product disassembled/sorted before it is pulverized? Is it instead shredded? What is yield percentage of recycling process? Which third parties inspect or audit process? What is method/basis for any fees required for takeback? Examples of other product-specific questions Kilowatt hours produced per kilowatt installed? Strength of performance guarantee – and finances to back it? Construction: Press-fit frames vs. screws and caulking? Percentage of individual product manufactured in the USA? Regulatory context: Transparency on environmental issues? Examples of manufacturer-specific questions Voluntary participation on reporting initiatives? Track record: Years of manufacturing experience? Regulatory context, controls, accountability of supply chain? ISO verifications: Manufacturing and environmental? Labor: Context, pay, benefits, policies? Thank you.