End-of-life management of crystalline silicon photovoltaic modules: current technologies, economic constraints and future perspectives

The energy transition towards net-zero emissions is accelerating the global spread of photovoltaics (PV), simultaneously generating a growing flow of end-of-life (EoL) modules whose management represents one of the most urgent environmental and economic challenges in the sector. Crystalline silicon (c-Si) modules, which dominate the market with a share exceeding 90 %, will constitute the main component of this waste stream, with cumulative volumes estimated between 60 and 78 million tonnes by 2050. Despite the growing interest from the scientific community, most of the proposed recycling technologies remain in the experimental phase, and critical aspects such as process costs, the quality of recovered materials, and the generation of secondary pollutants are still insufficiently addressed. This review critically analyses delamination and material recovery technologies for EoL c-Si modules, discussing their strengths, limitations, and development prospects, with particular attention to the technical, economic and environmental conditions necessary for the transition to industrially mature processes. The objective is to provide an updated analytical framework that can guide research and development choices in a sector poised for rapid growth in the coming decades.