Aluminum saving and CO2 emission reduction from waste recycling of China’s rooftop photovoltaics under carbon neutrality strategy
Bin Zhang,
Yingnan Zhang,
Yuantao Yang,
Zhaohua Wang
Affiliations
Bin Zhang
School of Management, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China; Digital Economy and Policy Intelligentization Key Laboratory of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China; Tangshan Research Institute, Beijing Institute of Technology, Hebei 063099, China
Yingnan Zhang
School of Management, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China; Digital Economy and Policy Intelligentization Key Laboratory of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China; Corresponding author
Yuantao Yang
School of Economics and Management, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, China
Zhaohua Wang
Digital Economy and Policy Intelligentization Key Laboratory of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China; Tangshan Research Institute, Beijing Institute of Technology, Hebei 063099, China; School of Economics, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, China; Corresponding author
Summary: Rooftop photovoltaics (RPVs) are crucial for decarbonizing the power sector and achieving carbon neutrality, with expected future capacity increases. The growth of RPVs necessitates substantial aluminum (Al) resources, contributing significantly to carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from Al production. Given China’s bauxite shortage, recycling Al from waste RPV panels presents an effective solution to enhance resource security and mitigate CO2 emissions. We developed a framework to project waste RPV quantities and assess the recycling potential of Al and its impact on CO2 emissions from 2020 to 2060. Our findings indicate potential waste flows of 95–221 million tonnes (Mt) and recycled Al ranging from 5 to 28 Mt, with a primary Al supply gap of 25–43 Mt. Recycling could reduce CO2 emissions by 35–207 Mt over the period. This research underscores the importance of Al resource security and sustainable RPV industry development in China’s pursuit of carbon neutrality.
