Solar cell module recycling device

Abstract

Provided is a device for reliably and easily separating a glass substrate and other materials in a reuse process for a used solar cell module.　This solar cell module recycling device separates a glass substrate and other materials. The solar cell module recycling device is characterized by comprising an upstream conveyance unit 30 for conveying a solar cell module 10, a roller brush 20 for separating said other materials by rotating with respect to the conveyed solar cell module while being in contact with said other materials, a solar cell module support unit 40 for supporting, from the glass substrate side, a region where the roller brush makes contact with the solar cell module, a raising and lowering mechanism 50 capable of adjusting the gap between the roller brush and a back sheet, a downstream conveyance unit 80 for conveying the glass substrate from which said other materials have been separated, a central processing control device for controlling operation of each unit, and a recovery means 60 for recovering said other materials that have been separated, wherein the roller brush has metal wires such as steel wires or resin wires such as nylon wires, and the diameter of the wires is optimized according to the rate of removal of said other materials.

Description

Recycling Device for Solar Cell Modules

[0001] The present invention relates to a recycling device for solar cell modules.

[0002] In order to reuse the constituent materials (glass substrates, encapsulants, solar cells, wiring materials, backsheets, etc.) of used solar cell modules, it is necessary to separate each material from one another. When separating other materials including solar cells from a glass substrate, including solar cells, wiring materials, and backsheets, a recycling device is used.

[0003] As a conventional recycling device, there was one that heated and softened the encapsulant described in Patent Document 1, and brought the heated blade into contact between the glass substrate and other materials for separation.

[0004] In the recycling device described in Patent Document 1, in order to bring the blade into contact following the backsheet surface, it is necessary to divide it into a plurality of parts and provide a buffer mechanism for each, but even then it is difficult to completely follow, so it was also difficult to completely separate other materials including solar cells.

[0005] In order to separate more completely, a method of using a roller brush made of a metal wire or the like instead of a blade is conceivable, and a recycling device for solar cell modules using a roller brush has been proposed in Patent Document 2.

[0006] Japanese Patent Publication No. 6271468, Japanese Patent Publication No. 5938309

[0007] However, when using a metal wire such as a steel wire for the material of the brush, assuming the dimensions of the solar cell module, the axial length of the roller brush will be about 1000 mm or more. Due to the weight of the brush itself, it is expected that the entire roller brush will sag and it will be difficult to bring it into contact following the backsheet surface of the solar cell module.

[0008] In the device proposed by Patent Document 2, the wire diameter of the roller brush is 1.5 mm or more and the wire length is 20 mm or more. In view of the overall weight, it is desirable that the wire diameter and wire length can be made smaller, but there has been no such technology in the past.

[0009] Furthermore, Patent Document 2 only assumes the separation of metal elements such as solar cells and wiring materials, and it was not possible to remove the backsheet and sealing material simultaneously or beforehand.

[0010] In view of the above circumstances, the present invention aims to provide a solar cell module recycling device that can completely separate materials other than the glass substrate by optimizing the material, wire diameter, wire length, etc., of the roller brush, or by including a step of removing the backsheet and sealing material in advance.

[0011] To achieve the above objective, the present invention provides a recycling apparatus for solar cell modules that separates a glass substrate from other materials, comprising: an upstream transport unit that receives and transports the solar cell modules; a roller brush that rotates in contact with the other materials and separates them from the solar cell modules transported by the upstream transport unit; a solar cell module support unit that supports the area of ​​the solar cell module in contact with the roller brush from the glass substrate side; a lifting mechanism capable of adjusting the gap between the roller brush and the back sheet; a downstream transport unit that transports the glass substrate from which the other materials have been separated; a central processing control device that controls the operation of the upstream transport unit, the roller brush, the lifting mechanism, and the downstream transport unit; and a recovery means for recovering the separated other materials, wherein the roller brush has a metal wire such as a steel wire or a resin wire such as nylon, and its wire diameter is optimized according to the removal rate of the other materials.

[0012] The rotational speed of the roller brush may be in the range of 100 rpm to less than 1000 rpm.

[0013] Upstream of the roller brush, there may be further means other than the roller brush for separating the glass substrate from the other material.

[0014] Other means besides the roller brush may include heating and softening the encapsulant of the solar cell module, and then bringing a heated blade into contact with the glass substrate and the other material to separate them.

[0015] According to the solar cell module recycling apparatus of the present invention, the entire roller brush is brought into contact with the backsheet surface of the solar cell module, making it possible to reliably and easily separate the solar cells, wiring material, backsheet, and sealing material from the glass substrate.

[0016] This is a perspective view showing the configuration of a recycling device for separating a layered structure of an embodiment from a glass substrate. This is a perspective view showing the configuration of a recycling device for separating a layered structure of an embodiment from a glass substrate. This is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing the cross-sectional configuration of the recycling device of the same embodiment. This is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing the cross-sectional configuration of the recycling device of the same embodiment. This is a configuration diagram showing the structure of the roller brush of the same embodiment. This is a graph showing experimental results of separation rates due to differences in the wire diameter of the roller brush. This is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing an example of a preliminary step for separating the backsheet and sealing material before the removal step using the roller brush.

[0017] The method for recycling solar cell modules according to the embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a solar cell module recycling device used in the embodiment, and Figures 2 and 3 are longitudinal cross-sectional views showing the cross-sectional configuration of the recycling device of the same embodiment. This solar cell panel recycling device includes a used solar cell module 10, a roller brush 20, an upstream transport unit 30, a solar cell module support unit 40, a downstream transport unit 80, and a central processing control device that controls the operation of each of these.

[0018] The solar cell module 10 is transported by the upstream transport unit 30 from the standby position F of the roller brush 20 to the mounting position of the roller brush 20. The upstream transport unit 30 is located upstream of the roller brush 20 and includes a plurality of upstream upper transport rollers 31 and a plurality of upstream lower transport rollers 32 arranged to grip and transport the solar cell module 10. The upstream lower transport rollers 32 further include a buffer mechanism (not shown) that follows variations in the thickness of the solar cell module 10.

[0019] Then, in the region supported by the solar cell module support section 40, the rotating roller brush 20 scrapes off only the materials other than the glass substrate in the solar cell module 10. That is, in the solar cell module 10, the layered structure containing metal components, the backsheet, and the sealing material are separated from the glass substrate. In this embodiment, when scraping the surface of the solar cell module 10, the roller brush 20 is fixed and the solar cell module 10 is moved horizontally from upstream to downstream, but the solar cell module 10 may be fixed and the roller brush 20 is moved horizontally. The glass substrate, from which other materials have been separated from the solar cell module 10, is further transported by the lower transport section 80 to the transport downstream position B of the roller brush 20. The downstream transport section 80 includes a plurality of downstream upper transport rollers 81 and a plurality of downstream lower transport rollers 82 arranged to grip and transport the peeled glass substrate, and further includes a buffer mechanism (not shown) provided on the downstream lower transport rollers 82, which follows the variation in the thickness of the solar cell module 10.

[0020] Here, the roller brush 20 has a structure in which nylon or wire brushes 22 are arranged radially around the central axis 21, as shown in Figure 5.

[0021] Here, if the material of the roller brush 20 is a metal wire such as steel wire, as shown in Figure 6, it is preferable that the wire diameter of the brush 22 be 0.1 to 0.9 mm, as shown in the experimental results. In consideration of weight, if the material of the roller brush 20 is a resin wire, the wire diameter is not limited to this. Also, based on practical experience, it is desirable that the rotational speed of the roller brush 20 be in the range of 100 rpm to less than 1000 rpm.

[0022] As shown in Figure 4, the solar cell module recycling device may be equipped with a lifting mechanism 50 on the roller brush 20 or the solar cell module support 40 that can adjust the gap between the roller brush 20 and the backsheet surface. The amount of material removed by the roller brush 20 is set to, for example, less than or equal to the height of the layered structure of the solar cell panel 10. In this embodiment, the lifting mechanism 50 adjusts the gap between the roller brush 20 and the backsheet surface using a ball screw, but a servo mechanism may be used, and a central processing control device may control the lifting mechanism 50 according to the detected backsheet surface height to optimize the gap. Other materials other than the glass substrate removed from the glass surface of the solar cell module 10 are recovered by a recovery means 60. The recovery means 60 may consist of a blower that separates the other materials, which have become dust, from the glass substrate surface, and a dust collector that recovers them.

[0023] In order to reliably remove and recover metal elements such as solar cells and wiring materials from the glass surface of the solar cell module 10, a preliminary step of separating the backsheet and encapsulant may be provided before the removal step using the roller brush 20. Figure 7 shows an example of this step. This step may involve heating and softening the encapsulant, and then bringing a heated blade 70 into contact with the glass substrate 11 and other materials 12 including the solar cells, wiring materials, and backsheet to separate them.

[0024] 10 Solar cell module 11 Glass substrate 12 Other materials 20 Roller brush 21 Shaft 22 Brush 30 Upstream transport section 31 Upstream upper transport roller 32 Upstream lower transport roller 40 Solar cell module support section 50 Lifting mechanism 60 Recovery means 70 Blade 80 Downstream transport section 81 Downstream upper transport roller 82 Downstream lower transport roller B Downstream transport position F Standby position

Claims

1. A solar cell module recycling apparatus for separating a glass substrate from other materials including a backsheet, comprising: an upstream transport unit that receives and transports the solar cell module; a roller brush that rotates in contact with the other materials and peels them off the solar cell module transported by the upstream transport unit; a solar cell module support unit that supports the area of ​​the solar cell module in contact with the roller brush from the glass substrate side; a lifting mechanism capable of adjusting the gap between the roller brush and the backsheet; a downstream transport unit that transports the glass substrate from which the other materials have been peeled off; a central processing control device that controls the operation of the upstream transport unit, the roller brush, the lifting mechanism, and the downstream transport unit; and a recovery means for recovering the peeled-off other materials, wherein the roller brush has a metal wire or a resin wire, and its wire diameter is optimized according to the removal rate of the other materials.

2. The solar cell module recycling apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the metal wire is a steel wire and the resin wire is a nylon wire.

3. The solar cell module recycling apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the rotation speed of the roller brush is in the range of 100 rpm to less than 1000 rpm.

4. The solar cell module recycling apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means other than the roller brush for separating the glass substrate from the other material, upstream of the roller brush.

5. The solar cell module recycling apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the means other than the roller brush is to heat and soften the sealant of the solar cell module, and to separate the glass substrate and the other material by bringing a heated blade into contact with it.

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