About Quasar
From Waste to Resource: Driving EU’s PV Solar Energy into the Future
The solar PV capacity has grown rapidly worldwide, surpassing 1 TW by 2022 and 260 GW in the EU by the end of 2023.
01
With a lifespan of 25-30 years, a significant portion of PV panels will reach end-of-life in the next decade, leading to a tenfold increase in decommissioned modules by 2050.
02
Managing end-of-life PV waste is critical, especially in the EU where it’s classified as e-waste under the WEEE directive, putting the responsibility on manufacturers for collection and recycling.
Unlocking Global Resource Potential
Achieving 28% of global power supply from PV by 2050 necessitates:
01
Installation of 14,000 GW of PV capacity, resulting in:
- Deployment of 35 billion PV modules.
- Consumption of 875 million tons of raw materials.
- Valued at 3.5 trillion USD
02
At the same time, significant volumes of secondary raw materials can be released, including:
- 220,000 tons of silicon.
- 5,200 tons of silver.
- Accompanied by 421 million tons of CO2 savings.
- 4,700,000 tons of glass.
- 62,000 tons of copper.
Project structure
Work packages for improved circularity
19 project partners from 9 countries will collect, treat, and upgrade solar panels that have reached their end of life, densify their value, and release them to serve as new products for solar energy and other purposes. The project comprises 14 interdisciplinary work packages (WP):
How we will do it
QUASAR will develop and implement solutions for systematic collection and management of end-of-life PV-modules, integrating various technologies and methodologies:
- Involving all stakeholders across the EoL supply chain.
- Incorporating concepts of reverse logistics technologies, AI/machine learning, and product lifecycle information management (PLIM) via digital twins.
- Implementing best practices for sorting, warehouse operations, testing, and repair/reuse
By doing this, QUASAR will foster:
QUASAR’s recycling technologies target End-of-Life recycling rates of 70-90% for silicon, metals, glass and polymers with high purity for reuse in new PV module manufacturing and other industries, with revenues of more than 13 € per module.
- End of Life Decision Support: assessing PV condition for reuse/repair/recycling.
- Repair Technology Solutions: diverting 50% of the PV “waste” from the recycling path.
- Recycling Technologies: enabling high purity of raw materials for reuse in various industries.
- Closed-Loop Systems: facilitating a circular economy for the PV industry.
Expected results
20%
Reduction of decommissioning costs (20%)
<5 EUR
PV module inspection costs < 5 EUR per module
<7.5 EUR
Module repair costs < 7,5 EUR per module
10.000 t
Recycling treatment capacity 10.000 t / year
Improved recycling rate
≥ 90%
Silicon
Currently 0%, no/limited high value recycling of high purity silicon
≥ 70%
Silver
Currently 0%
≥ 90%
Polymers
Currently 0%
≥ 80%
for reuse as float glass
Glass
currently <20% downcycling into glass wool