PES joins Dr. Wolfram Palitzsch of LuxChemtech, Dr. Charly Lemoine from CEA, and Dr. Ana Maria Martinez of SINTEF for a discussion about the latest groundbreaking advancements in solar panel recycling, and how the PHOTORAMA project is pioneering robust technological solutions to recover and recycle valuable materials from end-of-life PV panels.
PES: We are looking forward to catching up with you all today. In our last interview we spoke about the PHOTORAMA project and its purpose. Would you mind just recapping on the story so far with this, for readers who may have missed it?
Ana Maria Martinez (SINTEF): PHOTORAMA project is developing robust technological solutions for recovering and recycling desirable materials and components from end-of-life PV panels and scrap. Our main target is to demonstrate the potential of those technologies, providing new business perspectives.
PHOTORAMA is setting up a full management-Pilot Line including all needed interrelated successive steps needed for the management of end-of-life panels, i.e., disassembly, smart separation of the panels, and innovative recovery of metals (Si, Ag, In, Ga). In total, more than six technologies that strongly depend on each other are being brought to TRL 6-7 and implemented in a pilot line. Besides, the technologies developed to produce high-quality, high-purity secondary raw materials are also very efficient for the treatment of manufacturing waste.
We can also mention that the project has been selected as one of the EU-Horizon’s successful raw materials projects at the EU Raw Materials Week 2023, and the technology for the recovery of Si and Ag has been selected by the EU’s Innovation radar as one of the cutting-edge innovations developed by Europe’s leading researchers and innovators in 2023.
