/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/947189/solar-panel-green-energy-stock_1020.jpg "Disposal of used solar panels is a constant challenge in the green energy sector")
At the end of a day in the sun, solar panels, once a promising source of renewable energy, can release toxins if left in a pile unattended.
Many solar panels used to generate green energy are expected to reach the end of their useful lives and be decommissioned in the 2030s.
This has prompted companies to set up disposal systems for these used solar panels. Several companies have launched new projects to solve the looming problem.
Recycle a new life
NPC Inc., a Tokyo-based solar panel manufacturer, has developed a mechanical device capable of recycling more than 90% of solar panel materials. The device went on sale in 2019.
The tool uses a blade heated to 300 degrees or more to remove the glass from the solar panel. It separates the rest into different types of materials, such as resin and copper.
Each factory unit can process one solar panel per minute and up to 140,000 panels or more per year. NPC sold five units of the device in Japan, despite the high price tag of ¥100 million (US$867,000).
Last year, the company received an order from France.
"Demand already exists in Europe, where PV production has increased more than in Japan," said Masafumi Ito, president of NPC.
Ito added that his company offers ten devices, including a simple and affordable model.
Up to 280,000 tons of garbage in 2030
Japan's rapid expansion of solar power production is due to the introduction in 2012 of a feed-in tariff system that requires energy suppliers to buy electricity produced from renewable energy sources at a fixed price set by the government.
The lifetime of the solar modules will be 20 to 30 years. The government's New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) estimates that the number of solar cells used annually could reach 170,000 to 280,000 tons around 2036.
It is possible to reuse them, but few buyers want panels from old models that have low energy efficiency. However, the plates could be used to build other machines if their dismantling allowed for high-quality materials such as aluminum and silver.
Nimi Solar Co., based in Nimi, Okayama Prefecture, develops equipment to remove solar panels using steam.
The steam heats up to 600 degrees or more, vaporizing plastic and recovering more than 90 percent of materials, including glass and copper. The company said they hope to release the device around 2023.
"As more companies enter the market, the resulting competition will drive down technological innovation and costs," said Hideyuki Sakumoto, president of Nimi Solar.
Even the biggest companies are joining the fight.
Tokyo-based Solar Frontier KK, a subsidiary of major oil trader Idemitsu Kosan Co., has developed a technology that allows it to extract precious metals and other materials from spent solar cells using nitric acid.
Company officials said they hope to begin commercial recycling operations in early 2024. He said the company will initially produce 30,000 panels or more a year and will expand the size of its business to meet growing demand.
"No disposal funds, no license."
However, such technological approaches alone cannot provide a cure.
Solar panels contain toxic substances, including lead, but the way they are designed to prevent them from entering the water requires time and effort to dissolve them.
Panels used outside of recycling facilities are sent to landfills. However, it is assumed that without reducing the amount of waste, industrial waste landfills will reach their capacity limit in about 2035.
Another issue concerns disposal costs that energy producers must bear.
According to the Agency of Natural Resources and Energy, 80 percent of power plants will be built this year. In 2019, they had no savings to throw away. This raises fears that used solar panels will be abandoned in the coming years.
The government is in a hurry to solve the problem.
In 2020, the Law "On Special Measures for Renewable Energy" was amended to require electricity producers to allocate funds for the equipment of solar farm projects with a capacity of 10 kilowatts or more. This provision will be implemented from July this year.
However, the effectiveness of this measure remains an open question, as some power plants will split project sites, and the split sites will be small enough to be exempt from the regulations.
"Building new solar farms will be challenging," said Katsushi Takenaka, head of Solar Frontier's PV recycling office. "It is necessary to create an institutional mechanism that promotes the reuse of materials, such as the certification of recycled resources."
