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Strategic network planning under consideration of raw material criticality

Strategic network planning under consideration of raw material criticality - Using the example of the recycling of photovoltaic modules

PhD candidate: Eva Degel

Current situation

Since 2000, the installed photovoltaic (PV) output in Germany has increased strongly due to subsidies. As the modules have an expected lifetime of 25-30 years, a significant increase in waste volume can be expected in the future. In 2012, outdated PV-modules were integrated into the European WEEE-directive, so that the collection and proper recycling of PV modules with regard to the recycling quota is necessary. To meet the mandatory quota, it is sufficient to recover the contained low-value raw materials such as glass and aluminum. But considering raw material shortages and potential price increases, the recycling of strategic resources such as indium, silver, copper, tellurium or gallium, which are only present in small quantities, might be reasonable. At the moment potential technologies for recirculation are only available at the laboratory or pilot scale. The installation of these technologies involves high investments. With regard to the future increase of raw material demand and against the background of Germany’s import dependency, there is the question whether and how the recirculation of critical resources in PV modules can be enabled by early implementation of an advisable collection and exploration infrastructure.

Project goal

Against this background, this research project aims to concept a strategic planning approach for the deployment of collection and exploration infrastructure for PV modules, with particular regard to raw material criticalities. This approach supports investment decisions on location-, capacity- and technology planning of PV recycling plants by involving an economic evaluation.

Approach

The decision situation is reproduced by a multiperiodic MILP for location-, capacity- and technology planning. In order to describe the uncertainty concerning the availability and price development of strategic raw materials in the system decision, approaches of robust and stochastic optimization are used. In addition, new indicator systems for the evaluation of raw material criticality are taken into account and up-to-date assessment results concerning the expected criticality of specific raw materials are used. The results show the correlation between the optimal arrangement of exploration infrastructure and the considered development of raw material criticalities.