Method of reclaiming cadmium and tellurium from CdTe for CdTe photovoltaic modules

• US 10,683,565 B2
• Filed: 04/16/2018
• Issued: 06/16/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Holistic Solar Holdings, Orian Johnson, Scott A. Blow, Steven Gifis
• Original Assignee: Holistic Solar Holdings, Orian Johnson, Scott A. Blow, Steven Gifis
• Inventors: Kiss, Zoltan J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bos, Steven J
• Application Number:
  US15/953,850
• Publication Number:
  US 20190316224A1
• Time in Patent Office: 792 Days
• Field of Search: 423101-106, 75711, 75715
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 17/04 by wet processes
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 3/44 by chemical processes treatment or purification of solutions by liquid-liquid extraction C22B3/26, by ion-exchange extraction C22B3/42
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 7/007 by acid leaching
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 7/008 by an alkaline or ammoniacal leaching
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/0296 including, apart from doping material or other impurities, only AIIBVI compounds, e.g. CdS, ZnS, HgCdTe
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/03925 including AIIBVI compound materials, e.g. CdTe, CdS
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/042 PV modules or arrays of single PV cells supporting structures for PV modules H02S20/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/073 comprising only AIIBVI compound semiconductors, e.g. CdS/CdTe solar cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/1828 the active layers comprising only AIIBVI compounds, e.g. CdS, ZnS, CdTe
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/543 Solar cells from Group II-VI materials
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 10/20 Recycling

Abstract

A method of reclaiming cadmium material from photovoltaic (PV) modules is provided. The method includes submerging one or more portions of a PV module in a solution including non-distilled water, wherein the one or more portions of the PV module are submerged until cadmium material present on the PV module dissolves into the solution, boiling the solution until the dissolved cadmium material precipitates, and collecting the precipitated cadmium material.

Claims

1. A method of reclaiming cadmium material from photovoltaic (PV) modules, comprising:

submerging one or more portions of a PV module in a citric acid-based buffer solution, wherein the one or more portions of the PV module are submerged until cadmium material present on the PV module dissolves into the citric acid-based buffer solution;

boiling the citric acid-based buffer solution until the dissolved cadmium material precipitates; and

collecting the precipitated cadmium material.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising determining if a glass portion of the PV module has broken into a plurality of pieces.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein, if the glass portion of the PV module has broken into the plurality of pieces, the one or more portions of the PV module submerged in the citric acid-based buffer solution includes the plurality of pieces.

4. The method as recited in claim 2, further comprising:

if the glass portion of the PV module has not broken into the plurality of pieces;

opening an edge of the PV module; and

submerging the edge in the solution.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the cadmium material includes a cadmium compound.

6. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein the cadmium compound includes cadmium telluride.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more portions of the PV module are submerged for a period of two or more hours.