Scientists say they have “developed a process that returns silicon collected from used cells to greater than 99% purity within a day.”
Scientists from Australia’s Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials (IFM) have successfully tested a new process that can extract silicon from old solar panels, and convert it into a nanomaterial that can be used to build better batteries.
This converted nano-silicon is then mixed with graphite to develop a new type of battery anode shown to increase lithium-ion battery capacity by a factor of 10.
More than 100,000 tonnes of end-of-life solar panels will enter Australia’s waste stream by 2035 according to the research team. For this reason, lead researcher Dr. Md Mokhlesur Rahman believes it’s critical to develop a successful recycling program to divert old panels away from landfill and harvest and repurpose the panels’ most valuable components.
“Solar panel cells are fabricated using high-value silicon, but this material cannot be re-used without purification, as it becomes highly contaminated over the 25 to 30 years of
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