By: Anna Weitz, Clean Energy Engineer

Members of the NCCETC team recently toured the Solar Panel Recycling (SPR) facility in Salisbury, North Carolina. SPR specializes in recovering valuable materials from solar modules and reintroducing them into the manufacturing market. With four facilities across the U.S., SPR has the capacity to recycle up to 100 million pounds of solar panels annually. Their services include decommissioning, on-site transportation preparation, compliance guidance, and transportation across all 50 states. The Salisbury facility is also home to its parent company, Powerhouse Recycling, which processes a wide range of electronic waste.

During the visit, the SPR team explained that at least 95% of a solar module can be recycled. NCCETC staff were guided through each stage of the process. Most solar panels are composed of an aluminum frame, silicon crystalline solar cells, a plastic encapsulant, glass, a plastic backsheet, copper and silver wiring, and a plastic junction box containing electronics. The process begins with the removal of the aluminum frame, followed by the junction box, which is sent through Powerhouse Recycling’s electronics stream.

Next, adhesives are removed from the panel edges, and the glass is shaved off into fine chips. In the case of bi-facial panels, two layers of glass are removed and no backsheet is present. The remaining layered materials are then crushed and separated into powder-like forms of copper, a silver-silicon mix, and plastics. Because solar modules vary in shape, design, and condition, SPR often customizes its approach for each batch, serving utility-scale, commercial, and residential projects.

NCCETC plans to use insights from the tour to develop an educational fact sheet on solar panel recycling as part of the Carolinas Development Assistance and Siting Hub (Carolinas DASH) project. Similar resources can be found on the Carolinas DASH project website.

To learn more about SPR, check out NCCETC’s previous article or visit solarpanelrecycling.com.