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Researchers at the SCoPE Lab for Green Metals, School of Chemical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, assessed a laser-based end-of-life solar panel recycling process. The study compared three scenarios: landfilling, partial recycling, and full recycling. Using ReCiPe 2016 (H) under a gate-to-gate life cycle assessment framework, the full recycling process showed approximately 84% greater environmental benefits than partial recycling. Material recovery included aluminium, silicon, glass, and silver chloride (AgCl). Endpoint analysis reported improvements in human health (70.8%), resource depletion (134.5%), and ecosystem quality (365.87%) per tonne processed. Techno-economic analysis found processing 8,000 tonnes annually, equivalent to around 340,426 panels, produced only a slightly positive net present value. Researchers concluded the laser-based route remains constrained by technical limitations and current market conditions.
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