PV Waste Thermal Treatment According to the Circular Economy Concept

Magdalena Bogacka, Martyna Potempa, Bartłomiej Milewicz, Dariusz Lewandowski, Krzysztof Pikoń, Katarzyna Klejnowska, Piotr Sobik and Edyta Misztal
Additional contact information
Magdalena Bogacka: Department of Technologies and Installations for Waste Management, Silesian University of Technology, Konarskiego 18, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Martyna Potempa: Department of Metallurgy, Łukasiewicz Research Network, Institute of Non-Ferrous Metals, Sowińskiego 5, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Bartłomiej Milewicz: Department of Technologies and Installations for Waste Management, Silesian University of Technology, Konarskiego 18, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Dariusz Lewandowski: Department of Metallurgy, Łukasiewicz Research Network, Institute of Non-Ferrous Metals, Sowińskiego 5, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Krzysztof Pikoń: Department of Technologies and Installations for Waste Management, Silesian University of Technology, Konarskiego 18, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Katarzyna Klejnowska: Department of Metallurgy, Łukasiewicz Research Network, Institute of Non-Ferrous Metals, Sowińskiego 5, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Piotr Sobik: Helioenergia Sp. z o.o., Rybnicka 68, 44-230 Czerwionka-Leszczyny, Poland
Edyta Misztal: Institute for Chemical Processing of Coal, Zamkowa 1, 41-803 Zabrze, Poland

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 24, 1-13

Abstract: Photovoltaic panels (PV) are one of the most popular technological solutions used to produce green renewable energy. They are known as green technology, but by analyzing a life cycle of a common panel, we can find out that production of these panels is strictly associated with generation of a large waste stream. PV modules are constantly modified and, therefore, it is required to consider the impact of the applied materials on the environment during the whole lifecycle of the product. The most important aspect of the assessment of a life cycle of a photovoltaic module in the phase of decommissioning is material recycling. The process of material recycling is very difficult, due to the lamination used in the currently exploited technology. This paper presents the results of pyrolysis for a sample of a silicon module. The results of the presented research show a weight loss of 48.16 in case of the tested samples. This paper presents the outcome of a quantitative analysis of the content of polycyclic aromatic for liquid and concentrations of Br, Cl and F for a gaseous fraction of pyrolysis products. The goal of the research presented in the paper was to find the optimal parameters for thermal separation, as well as the influence of the energy consumption and materials separation efficiency on the final thermal efficiency of the process.

Keywords: PV cells; thermal decomposition; PV recycling; pyrolysis; PV materials (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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