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Recovery of Silicon via Using KOH-Ethanol Solution by Separating Different Layers of End-of-Life PV Modules

  • Recycling Silicon and Silicon Compounds
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Abstract

With the rapid increase of photovoltaic (PV) system production and installation, the recycling of end-of-life PV modules has become an important issue. In this paper, the recovery of Si by separating the layers of end-of-life PV modules using KOH-ethanol solution was investigated. Compared with traditional swelling or dissolving reagents (such as benzene and trichloroethylene), KOH-ethanol is a green reagent with low environmental toxicity. The experiments explored the effect of different alkalis, module sizes, temperatures, KOH concentrations, and solid-to-liquid ratios on the separation ratio of the PV modules. The mechanism for separating these layers was also studied. Under optimal conditions, the layers of these PV modules can be completely separated in 3 h, and oxidation of the recovered Si wafer can be controlled. Hence, this method of recycling PV modules is of great significance for environmental protection and resource utilization.

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Acknowledgements

This work is supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 51934006, U1702251) and the Major Science and Technology Projects in Yunnan Province (No. 2019ZE007).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Green Process and Engineering, National Engineering Laboratory for Hydrometallurgical Cleaner Production Technology, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, People’s Republic of China

    Zhi Wang, Dong Wang & Janwei Cao

  2. Innovation Academy for Green Manufacture, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, People’s Republic of China

    Zhi Wang, Dong Wang & Janwei Cao

  3. National Engineering Laboratory for Vacuum Metallurgy, Faculty of Metallurgical and Energy Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, 650093, People’s Republic of China

    Yang Yan, Wenhui Ma, Kuixian Wei & Lei Yun

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  1. Yang Yan
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  2. Zhi Wang
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  3. Dong Wang
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Correspondence to Zhi Wang or Dong Wang.

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Yan, Y., Wang, Z., Wang, D. et al. Recovery of Silicon via Using KOH-Ethanol Solution by Separating Different Layers of End-of-Life PV Modules. JOM 72, 2624–2632 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-020-04193-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-020-04193-6

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