Driven by the global energy transition and the “dual carbon” goal, the installed capacity of photovoltaic
is growing at an average annual rate of 25%, but the accompanying wave of decommissioning is
approaching - it is expected that by 2030, the world's discarded solar panels will exceed 8 million tons.
Traditional landfill incineration treatment not only causes waste of glass, aluminum frame and other
materials, but also lead to lead, cadmium and other toxic substances leakage risk. Solar panel
recycling machine as a key equipment to crack the resource recycling problem, through innovative
processes to realize the accurate recovery of silicon, silver, copper and other high-value materials
in the photovoltaic module, to promote the new energy industry chain to the sustainable
development of the depth of progress.
Technical structure and core technology of solar panel recycling machine
Photovoltaic module recycling needs to overcome the three major problems of laminated structure dismantling,
non-destructive separation of materials, and control of toxic substances, and the mainstream technology route
covers the synergistic innovation of physical dismantling, chemical purification, and pyrolysis separation.
1. Intelligent pretreatment system
Bezel disassembly and junction box removal
Mechanical arm with laser cutting machine accurately strips the aluminum frame, infrared thermal imaging technology
locates the position of the junction box to avoid damage to the internal battery cells, and the metal recovery rate is
increased to 99%.
Laminated Material Separation
Adopting low temperature pyrolysis technology (200-250℃) to soften EVA film, separating glass cover and back plate by
roller press type sorting machine, the processing speed of single line reaches 2 tons/hour.
2. Material refinement sorting technology
Silicon battery sheet recycling
High-pressure pulse crusher crushes the cell wafers to 0.5-2mm particles, eddy current sorter separates the silicon powder
and metal wires, the silicon purity can reach 99.9%, and it is directly used for metallurgical grade silicon reproduction.
Precious metal extraction
Chemical leaching method to dissolve silver nanoparticles in silver paste:
Acid leaching process: Nitric acid - hydrogen peroxide system to dissolve silver, leaching rate > 98%;
Electrolysis purification: rotating cathode electrolyzer outputs electrolytic silver powder with 99.99% purity;
Tail liquid treatment: Ion exchange resin recovers residual metal, wastewater reuse rate is over 90%.
3. Environmental safety control system
Toxic substance sealing
Lead and tin soldering tapes are separated by low-temperature fusion precipitation, and the lead elements in the glass
are transformed into stable lead sulfide through sulfide fixation technology, and the leaching toxicity is less than 0.05mg/L;
Exhaust gas purification
RTO regenerative thermal incinerator treats VOCs generated by pyrolysis, with dioxin emission concentration <0.1ng
TEQ/m³, meeting EU environmental standards.
Industry technology breakthroughs and industrialization challenges
1. Core equipment innovation
Physical method of all-component recovery system
The new dry crushing and sorting equipment can synchronize the recovery of the four major materials: glass, silica
powder, copper and silver, saving 80% of water and 45% of energy consumption compared with the traditional wet process;
Laser unbonding technology
532nm pulsed laser accurately interrupts EVA molecular bonding, realizing non-contact separation of glass and cell,
avoiding silicon wafer crushing loss, and increasing the complete rate of module disassembly to 95%.
2. Economic optimization path
Efficient Recovery of Silver Paste
The amount of silver extracted from each ton of scrap panels breaks through 800 grams, and with the increase in silver
price (average price of $700/kg in 2023), the annual output value of a single line increases by 2 million yuan;
Upgrade utilization of silicon materials
Silicon powder is used in the production of lithium anode materials after acid washing and purification, increasing the
added value by 3 times and opening up a new scenario of new energy automobile industry chain synergy.
3. Scale application pain points
Diversity of module structure
The differences in encapsulation materials of different technology routes such as monocrystalline silicon, PERC, HJT,
etc. require the development of adaptive sorting algorithms;
High recycling cost
Currently, the full-process processing cost is about 250-400 USD/ton, and it needs to rely on policy subsidies to be profitable;
Lack of global standards
The mandatory recycling rate in Europe and the United States requires 85%, while some emerging markets have not
yet established a regulatory system, restricting the popularization of the technology.
Market Opportunities and Future Technology Trends
1. 100 billion recycling market start
Driven by regional policies
EU “Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive” requires that the PV recycling rate reach 80% in 2024, and
China's “14th Five-Year Plan for Circular Economy Development” specifies the construction of 10 PV recycling
demonstration projects;
Industry Chain Synergy
PV giants accelerate the layout of “production - recovery - regeneration” closed loop, 2025 global demand for
professional recycling equipment is expected to exceed 5 billion yuan.
2. Subversive technology iteration direction
Intelligent dismantling system
Machine vision + AI algorithm recognizes the structure of different models of components, automatically
generates the optimal dismantling program, and reduces manual intervention by 70%;
Direct regeneration technology
Developing low-temperature detackifier to dissolve EVA, complete recovery of 6-inch silicon wafers, and
directly use them for new module manufacturing after polishing treatment, with 40% cost reduction;
Precious metal substitution research
Promote new electrode materials such as silver-coated copper and conductive adhesive to reduce precious
metal dependence from the source and promote the simplification of the recycling process.
3. Expansion of emerging application scenarios
Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) Recycling
Develop non-destructive stripping technology for flexible modules to meet the recycling needs of curved
glass and thin film batteries;
Space Photovoltaic Panel Recycling
Develop microwave dissociation technology to realize safe recovery of space materials for special
components under high radiation environment.
Conclusion: Building a green map for the whole life cycle of photovoltaics
The technological evolution of solar panel recycling machine is reshaping the logic of sustainable development of
PV industry. Through the technological closed loop of high-efficiency dismantling, material regeneration and
pollution prevention and control, the equipment not only breaks the paradox of “green energy produces
polluted waste”, but also gives birth to a new model of circular economy from silicon material to components.
With carbon tariffs, extended producer responsibility system and other policies to the ground, mastering the
core recycling technology enterprises will win the strategic initiative in the global new energy competition.
In the next decade, PV recycling industry is expected to replicate the explosive trajectory of power battery
recycling and become another growth pole of the green technology revolution.