They can’t be recycled?..................
The heavily taxpayer subsidized solar industry has created millions of pounds of polluted sludge and contaminated water..
The now-defunct, bankrupted Solyndra used its $535 million in guaranteed federal tax dollars to generate about 12.5 million pounds of hazardous waste, much of which was carcinogenic cadmium-contaminated waste, during its four years of operations.
But, you say, solar energy is clean, green, and ... Isn’t that what we have all been told?
The truth can be brutal. The average lifespan of a solar panel is about 20 years, but high temperatures can accelerate the aging process for solar cells, and snow, dust, and other natural events (tornadoes, earthquakes),can cause material fatigue on the surface and in the internal electric circuits – reducing the panel’s power output.
Another real concern is the vast increase in the use of nitrogen trifluoride (NF3) in the construction of solar panels – up 1,057 percent over the past 25 years. The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change deems NF3 to be 17,200 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas ..
https://www.cfact.org/2019/09/15/the-solar-panel-toxic-waste-problem/
“They can’t be recycled?..................”
No, not easily. They have high amounts of heavy metals.
Old solar panels are an environmental nightmare.
Incidentally, so are carbon fiber bicycles.
Yes they are easily recycled. Unfortunately for now, there just aren’t enough old panels to support economically recycling them. The solar boom is less than 10 years old, while panels last 20+ years. Short term problem that the market will correct.
No, they cannot be recycled, at least not without wasting a lot of energy and material.
Solar cells are made with gallium arsenide, hideously toxic.
They have a half life of 15 to 20 years, which means you only get half the energy output after 15 to 20 years.