It's hard work soaking up sunlight to generate clean electricity. After about 25 to 30 years, solar panels wear out. Over the years, heating and cooling cycles stress the materials. Small cracks develop, precipitation corrodes the frame and layers of materials can start to peel apart. In 2023, about 90% of old or faulty solar panels in the U.S. ended up in landfills. Millions of panels have been installed worldwide over the past few decades ' and by about 2030, so many will be ready to retire that they could cover about 3,000 football fields. As an electrical engineer who has studied many aspects of renewable energy, recycling solar panels seems like a smart idea, but it's complicated. Built to withstand years of wind and weather, solar panels are designed for strength and are not easy to break down. Sending a solar panel to a landfill costs between US$1 and $5 in the U.S. But recycling it can cost three to four times as much, around $18. And the valuable materials inside solar...
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