Waste Solar Cell Pyrolysis With Porous Supports and Hot Air
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for processing waste solar cell modules are inefficient in terms of processing time and cost, as they either prolong the processing time or increase fuel costs when attempting to increase the processing speed.
Innovation Solution
A method involving heating a solar cell module above a porous ceramic support with a predetermined gap, using hot air to enhance heat transfer, and employing a porous material supporting a transition metal oxide to oxidatively decompose resin components, with spacers or lifting members to maintain separation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If the solar cell module is heated on the porous molded body as in prior art, then the resin component is combusted and valuable materials are recovered, but the processing time is prolonged because the temperature rise is moderate
Solution Approach 1:
The heating system is segmented into multiple hot air supply ports positioned at different locations (front, rear, left, right sides) of the solar cell module. This segmentation allows simultaneous heating of multiple regions, accelerating the overall temperature rise and reducing processing time while maintaining complete combustion of resin components.
Solution Approach 2:
Hot air is supplied preliminarily from multiple directions before the main combustion process begins. This preliminary heating action pre-warms the solar cell module and resin components, enabling faster reaching of combustion temperature and significantly reducing the time required for complete resin decomposition.
2Productivity
If the processing speed is increased by increasing the temperature in a pyrolysis furnace, then the processing time is shortened, but the fuel cost is increased
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses pneumatic delivery of hot air through multiple supply ports positioned around the solar cell module. This pneumatic heating system is more energy-efficient than conventional furnace heating because it delivers concentrated thermal energy directly to the processing location, reducing overall fuel consumption while achieving rapid temperature rise and short processing time.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of uniformly heating the entire furnace, hot air is supplied locally at specific positions (front, rear, left, right sides) where the solar cell module is located. This localized heating approach concentrates energy where needed, achieving fast processing speed without the excessive fuel consumption required for uniform high-temperature furnace heating.
3Loss of energy
If the solar cell module is placed close to the porous molded body, then heat transfer is improved, but the resin component may not be sufficiently combusted and valuable materials are contaminated
Solution Approach 1:
The heating approach transitions from bottom-up heating (single dimension) to multi-directional heating by supplying hot air from front, rear, left, and right sides. This dimensional change allows heat to reach the resin components from multiple angles simultaneously, ensuring complete combustion without requiring close contact with the porous molded body, thus preventing contamination while maintaining efficient heat transfer.
Solution Approach 2:
Hot air acts as an intermediary medium to transfer thermal energy to the solar cell module and resin components. Instead of direct contact heating that causes contamination, hot air circulates around the module, delivering heat uniformly from multiple directions and ensuring complete resin combustion without soot generation or valuable material contamination.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach improves processing speed, reduces time, and efficiently recovers valuable materials while minimizing soot generation and fuel costs.
Implementation Method 1
hot air is sent from a porous material (B) side to insides of the porous material (B) and the porous ceramic support (A) and to a gap between the solar cell module (C) and the porous ceramic support (A)
Implementation Method 2
porous material (B) supporting a transition metal oxide
Implementation Method 3
oxidatively decompose a resin component included in the solar cell module (C)
Implementation Method 4
porous ceramic support (A) and the porous material (B)
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a method for efficiently processing a waste solar cell.A method for continuously processing a waste solar cell, the method including a heating step of heating a solar cell module including a resin back sheet and a sealing resin layer in a pyrolysis furnace to melt and oxidatively decompose a resin component included in the solar cell module, wherein in the heating step, in a state in which the solar cell module is placed above a porous ceramic support so as to be separated from the porous ceramic support, and the porous ceramic support is stacked on a porous material supporting a transition metal oxide, hot air is sent from a porous material side to insides of the porous material and the porous ceramic support and to a gap between the solar cell module and the porous ceramic support.