As solar energy adoption surges worldwide, so does the need to responsibly manage end-of-life (EoL) photovoltaic (PV) panels. Mechanical recycling has emerged as an efficient, eco-friendly, and scalable method for solar panel recycling, especially for silicon-based panels. In this post, we’ll walk through the process of recycling 500kg of solar panels per hour using the mechanical method.
Step 1: Dismantling and Sorting
The process begins with dismantling of the solar panel units. Technicians remove the aluminum frames, junction boxes, and cables. These components are sorted for separate recycling streams: aluminum can be directly sent for remelting and reuse, while copper from the cables is collected as a valuable secondary raw material.
Step 2: Shredding and Size Reduction
Once the main PV module is stripped of external parts, it moves into an industrial shredder. In a 500kg/h line, the shredder is engineered to process panels into smaller fragments (typically 5–15 cm). This step prepares the material for downstream separation by liberating the embedded materials—glass, EVA (ethylene-vinyl acetate), silicon cells, and backsheet layers.
Step 3: Granulation and Milling
The shredded materials are fed into a granulator or hammer mill, which further reduces particle size to less than 5mm. This increases the efficiency of separation processes and helps achieve higher purity in the recovered fractions. Dust collection systems are usually integrated at this stage to ensure clean air output and worker safety.
Step 4: Separation and Recovery
At this point, a series of separation technologies are employed:
- Vibratory sieves: Separate glass from plastic and metal particles.
- Magnetic separators: Extract ferrous metals, if any.
- Eddy current separators: Remove non-ferrous metals like aluminum and copper.
- Electrostatic separators: Separate fine particles of silicon and other non-metals.
Recovered glass can reach over 70% purity and is suitable for reuse in construction or insulation. Silicon, while more difficult to purify mechanically, can be further processed chemically or thermally if required.
Step 5: Collection and Packaging of Recovered Materials
The final step involves collecting and packaging the sorted output. Each material stream—glass, aluminum, copper, plastic, and silicon—is bagged or containerized for transport to further processing facilities or end-users.
Conclusion
Mechanical recycling of 500kg/h solar panels offers a sustainable and profitable solution to solar waste. It ensures material recovery with minimal environmental impact and is compatible with automation for high-throughput operations. As global PV waste grows, this scalable method will be key to building a circular solar economy. Visiting: https://www.spdsx.com/2025/04/23/500kg-h-solar-panel-crushing-and-separation-machine-project-in-uk/
Leave a Reply