New PV module recycling tech achieves 97.75% silicon recovery for electrode production

A research team in India has developed a novel recycling process to recover silicon and native silica from end-of-life crystalline silicon solar cells for use in energy-storage applications. The process involves manual dismantling, thermal treatment, ball-milling, leaching, and mixing with carbon nanotubes and binders to form a slurry. The recovered material showed promising electrochemical performance in lithium-ion systems, with electrodes on copper foil and ITO exhibiting diffusion-controlled behavior, and those on graphite substrates showing capacitive charge-storage characteristics. The study concludes that electrodes on copper foil and ITO are suitable for silicon-based electrodes in Li-ion systems, while graphite-based electrodes show promise for sustainability-driven energy-storage applications.

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2026/07/02/new-pv-module-recycling-tech-achieves-97-75-silicon-recovery-for-electrode-production/