National University of Tainan (NUTN) was invited to participate in the 2026 Taiwan InnoTech Expo – Future Tech Pavilion, held from September 17 to 19, where the University showcased “PV-Zero: AI-Assisted Circular Recycling of Photovoltaic Waste” in the Industry-Academia Collaboration Zone. The exhibition highlighted NUTN’s research and development in low-carbon solar panel recycling, material separation, and high-value reuse, as well as its efforts to bring circular economy technologies from research into practical applications.
The technology was developed by a research team led by Distinguished Professor Yaw-Shyan Fu of the Department of Green Energy Technology at NUTN. Building on the team’s core “PV Circulator” technology, which received Third Place in the Net-Zero Technology category of the TIE Award at the 2023 Taiwan InnoTech Expo, the newly developed PV-Zero integrates AI-assisted identification, precise material separation, and downstream reuse to further advance the circular utilization of retired photovoltaic (PV) panels.
Retired PV panels contain a range of valuable materials, including glass, silicon, silver, and ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA). Although silver accounts for only approximately 0.03% of a panel’s composition, it remains a valuable material for recovery. PV-Zero uses AI to identify module characteristics and dimensions, optimizing processes such as frame removal, backsheet separation, and material delamination. By reducing the material mixing caused by conventional crushing processes, the technology facilitates the gradual separation of glass, silicon, silver, and EVA for subsequent reuse.
Beyond material recovery, the NUTN research team has developed technologies for high-value applications of recovered materials. These include converting recycled glass into sodium silicate, producing hydrogen from recovered silicon, and purifying recovered silver. By combining material separation with downstream applications, the team aims to move photovoltaic waste management beyond basic recycling toward high-value resource recovery. Related technologies have been patented, and the research findings have also been published in the international journal Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells.
Professor Yaw-Shyan Fu emphasized that the key challenge in solar panel recycling is not simply dismantling retired panels, but ensuring that the separated materials meet the requirements of downstream applications. By simultaneously addressing recovery efficiency, material purity, and practical usability, the technology can help return glass, silicon, silver, and EVA to the industrial supply chain and gradually establish a more complete circular resource model.
NUTN’s solar panel recycling technology has progressively expanded from laboratory research to industrial and international applications. The University has established a demonstration site in Tainan and completed more than two years of practical validation in California. In July 2026, the research team also held a solar panel recycling technology symposium in Tokyo to promote international technical exchange and collaboration.
At the Future Tech Pavilion, the NUTN research team used equipment models and samples of recovered materials to demonstrate how retired solar panels can be identified, dismantled, separated, and transformed into reusable resources. NUTN has also brought together industry partners to establish the Solar Cell Circular Economy Industry Alliance, connecting stakeholders across the photovoltaic value chain. Through this platform, the University will continue to strengthen technology exchange and industry-academia collaboration, improve material separation and reuse technologies, and help transform retired solar panels from a waste management challenge into valuable resources for a circular economy.