Tokyo-based solar panel manufacturer NPC Inc. has developed mechanical equipment that can recycle more than 90% of the materials contained in solar panels, Japanese media reported.
The device uses a blade heated to about 300°C to remove glass from the surface of the solar panel. It breaks down the residue into different materials such as resin and copper.
Each piece of equipment can process one solar panel per minute and up to 140,000 panels per year. So far, NPC has sold five units of the device in Japan, despite the high price of ¥100 million ($867,000).
Niimi Solar Co., based in Niimi, is developing equipment that uses water vapor heated to 600°C to vaporize plastic and will recover more than 90% of materials, including glass and copper. Representatives of the company said they hope to bring the device to a commercial basis around 2023.
Solar Frontier KK, the Tokyo-based subsidiary of major oil distributor Idemitsu Kosan Co., has developed a technology to extract precious metals from used solar panels using nitric acid.
Company representatives said they hope to start recycling recovered substances as early as 2024.
They said the company would start by processing roughly 30,000 panels a year and scale up the business to meet growing demand.
Solar panels are designed to last 20 to 30 years. The state organization for developing new energy and industrial technologies (NEDO) has estimated that the volume of obsolete solar panels during the year will peak around 2036 at 170-280 thousand tons.