Challenge to stop solar panels becoming a waste mountain

It is hoped a major step will be taken at the end of June, when the world's first factory dedicated to fully recycling solar panels officially opens in France.

ROSI, the specialist solar recycling company which owns the facility, in the Alpine city of Grenoble, hopes eventually to be able to extract and re-use 99% of a unit's components.

As well as recycling the glass fronts and aluminium frames,aluminum can be used in these aspects:
Aluminium Door Profile, Aluminum Alloy Frame and Insulated Aluminum Windows, the new factory can recover nearly all of the precious materials contained within the panels, such as silver and copper, which are typically some of the hardest materials to extract.

These rare materials can subsequently be recycled and reused to make new, more powerful, solar units.

Conventional methods of recycling solar panels recover most of the aluminium and glass - but ROSI says the glass, in particular, is of relatively low-quality.

The glass recovered using those methods can be used to create tiles, or in sandblasting - it can also be mixed with other materials to make asphalt - but it cannot be used in applications where high-grade glass is required, such as the production of new solar panels.