PHOtovoltaic waste management – advanced Technologies for recOvery and recycling of secondary RAw MAterials from end-of-life modules

Objective

Since the last decades, Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) have been drastically increasing in Europe, particularly for recent technologies such as Photovoltaic (PV) devices. These products are designed as complex sandwiches, which make the recovery of the critical (Si, In, Ga) and precious (Ag) raw materials encapsulated in the layers extremely challenging.
The overall objective of PHOTORAMA is to draw up a profitable and sustainable circular value chain that will lead to a carbon neutral PV industry. PHOTORAMA will develop and demonstrate the industrial prospective of recycling solutions to recover and recycle all the materials ‘components from End-of-life PV panels. A complementary consortium of 13 European companies and research institutes has built the framework of PHOTORAMA as follow:
(1) the development of innovative processes and technologies from TRL4-5 to TRL7 to establish a sound recycling scheme to increase significantly resource efficiency with decisive cost-cutting solutions. The implementation of automated disassembly and sandwich opening as layer separation (MONDRAGON, DFD, CEA) enabling high-recovery (> 95%) of secondary raw materials: Ag, Si (SINTEF, CEA, IDENER) and In, Ga (LUXCHEMTECH) from EoL PV panels (crystalline silicon, thin films),
(2) the full-circularity approach emphasised from collection (PV CYCLE) to marketable new products from Si, In, Ga, Ag (RHP), glass (MALTHA) mainly for PV manufacturing (EGP),
(3) the demonstration of the business viability and attractiveness of its technological solutions (BIFA, ENEA) as one of the most competitive perspective for PV recycling.
PHOTORAMA will strengthen this ambitious model with environmental impacts assessments and a strategic dissemination and exploitation plan supported by a strong effort for raising societal awareness (ZSI). The implementation of PHOTORAMA recycling scheme would unlock already more than 100,000 tons of valuable secondary raw materials by 2030.

Fields of science

• engineering and technology › materials engineering › coating and films
• engineering and technology › environmental engineering › waste management › waste treatment processes › recycling
• engineering and technology › environmental engineering › energy and fuels › renewable energy › solar energy

Programme(s)

• H2020-EU.3.5.3. - Ensuring the sustainable supply of non-energy and non-agricultural raw materials

Topic(s)

• CE-SC5-07-2020 - Raw materials innovation for the circular economy: sustainable processing, reuse, recycling and recovery schemes

Call for proposal

H2020-LCCI-2020-EASME-twostage
See other projects for this call

Funding Scheme

IA - Innovation action

Coordinator

COMMISSARIAT A L ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES

Address

Rue Leblanc 25
75015 Paris 15
France

Activity type

Research Organisations

EU contribution

€ 1 532 341

Participants (12)

ENEL GREEN POWER SPA

Italy

EU contribution

€ 785 706,25

Address

Viale Regina Margherita 125
00198 Roma

Activity type

Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)

MONDRAGON ASSEMBLY SOCIEDAD COOPERATIVA

Spain

EU contribution

€ 1 181 687,50

Address

Poligono Industrial Bainetxe 5A
20550 Aretxabaleta

Activity type

Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)

PV CYCLE FRANCE

France

EU contribution

€ 153 753,25

Address

13 Rue Du Quatre-septembre
75002 Paris

Activity type

Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)

RHP TECHNOLOGY GMBH

Austria

EU contribution

€ 375 987,50

Address

Forschungszentrum Seibersdorf Gebaude Ca
2444 Seibersdorf An Der Leitha

Activity type

Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)

LUXCHEMTECH GMBH

Germany

EU contribution

€ 1 128 855,88

Address

Alfred Lange Strasse 18
09599 Freiberg

Activity type

Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)

MALTHA GLASRECYCLAGE BELGIE

Belgium

EU contribution

€ 232 032,50

Address

Fabrieksstraat 114
3920 Lommel

Activity type

Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)

SINTEF AS

Norway

EU contribution

€ 588 816,25

Address

Strindvegen 4
7034 Trondheim

Activity type

Research Organisations

AGENZIA NAZIONALE PER LE NUOVE TECNOLOGIE, L'ENERGIA E LO SVILUPPO ECONOMICO SOSTENIBILE

Italy

EU contribution

€ 400 133,75

Address

Lungotevere Grande Ammiraglio Thaon Di Revel 76
000196 Roma

Activity type

Research Organisations

DFD - DENSE FLUID DEGREASING

France

EU contribution

€ 771 540

Address

149 Avenue Du Brezet
63100 Clermont-ferrand

Activity type

Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)

IDENER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT AGRUPACION DE INTERES ECONOMICO

Spain

EU contribution

€ 423 437,50

Address

Calle Early Ovington 24-8
41300 La Rinconada Sevilla

Activity type

Research Organisations

BIFA UMWELTINSTITUT GMBH

Germany

EU contribution

€ 418 250

Address

Am Mittleren Moss 46
86167 Augsburg

Activity type

Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)

ZENTRUM FUR SOZIALE INNOVATION GMBH

Austria

EU contribution

€ 389 125

Address

Linke Wienzeile 246
1150 Wien

Activity type

Research Organisations