The results depicted that efficiency measures at process and cell level will reduce the specific tellurium demand per watt peak such that the total tellurium demand starts to decline after 2020 despite further
energy and environmental impact. According to him, the silicon wafer and the EVA contribute 14% to the weight, but account for a respective 83% of the embedded energy, 66% of the climate change impact and 51% of the water impact associated with a PV module. Therefore, it is conceivable that it will eventually be desirable to recycle them (either as feedstock, wafer, or even cell) in the next few decades from the perspective of environmental protection.
In order to investigate the feasibility of PV module recycling,
this paper first presents an overview of currently commercially available PV modules in Section 2. Then, potential recycling pathways including manufacturing waste recycling, end-of-life module recycling, remanufacturing and reuse, are introduced in Section 3. For each pathway, proven technologies are presented. The advantages and disadvantages of the technologies are described and research and development needs are discussed. Then, studies on the evaluation of potential environmental eco- nomic benefits of establishing PV recycling business are also reviewed. Finally the conclusions are presented in Section 4.