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- Nachgewiesen in: USPTO Patent Applications
- Sprachen: English
- Document Number: 20220052220
- Publication Date: February 17, 2022
- Appl. No: 17/078306
- Application Filed: October 23, 2020
- Assignees: National Tsing Hua University (Hsinchu City, TW)
- Claim: 1. A method for recovering a resource from a CIGS thin-film solar cell to be recycled, the method comprising steps of: a) providing the CIGS thin-film solar cell which includes a front substrate, a light absorbing unit disposed rearwardly of the front substrate, and having a CIGS photovoltaic layer which includes copper, indium, gallium, and selenide, a first adhesive layer sandwiched between the front substrate and the light absorbing unit, a rear substrate unit disposed rearwardly of the light absorbing unit, and including at least one rear substrate and a second adhesive layer, and an electrical contact layer sandwiched between the light absorbing unit and the rear substrate unit, wherein a bonding force between the electrical contact layer and the light absorbing unit is smaller than a bonding force between the electrical contact layer and the rear substrate unit; and b) subjecting the CIGS thin-film solar cell to a cooling treatment at a predetermined temperature lower than a brittleness temperature of the second adhesive layer such that the light absorbing unit is separated from the electrical contact layer as a result of a thermal strain produced between the electrical contact layer and the rear substrate unit.
- Claim: 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in step b), the predetermined temperature is also lower than a brittleness temperature of the first adhesive layer so as to reduce a viscosity of the first adhesive layer, thereby facilitating detachment of the front substrate from the light absorbing unit.
- Claim: 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the electrical contact layer is made of molybdenum.
- Claim: 4. The method according to claim 1, after step b), further comprising a step of c) removing the first adhesive layer using a solvent so as to obtain the light absorbing unit that is recovered from the CIGS thin-film solar cell.
- Claim: 5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the first adhesive layer is made of ethylene-vinyl acetate, and the solvent is a diluted HCl aqueous solution having a concentration ranging from 0.1 mol/L to 1.2 mol/L.
- Claim: 6. The method according to claim 4, after step c), further comprising a step of d) subjecting the recovered light absorbing unit to an annealing treatment at a temperature ranging from 800° C. to 950° C. in an oxygen ambient so as to remove the selenide in the light absorbing unit and to collect selenium oxide, thereby obtaining an intermediate including oxides of copper, indium, and gallium.
- Claim: 7. The method according to claim 6, after step d), further comprising a step of e) dissolving copper, indium, and gallium ions from the intermediate using an inorganic acid aqueous solution as a solvent so as to obtain a first acid solution including the copper, indium, and gallium ions.
- Claim: 8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising a step of f) subjecting the first acid solution to extraction using di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid as an eluent whilst keeping aqueous phase pH value to be not greater than 1 so as to obtain a first organic phase solution including the indium ions, and a second acid solution including the copper and gallium ions.
- Claim: 9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising a step of g) subjecting the second acid solution to extraction using di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid as an eluent whilst keeping aqueous phase pH value to be less than 7 and greater than 1 so as to obtain a second organic phase solution including the gallium ions, and a third acid solution including the copper ions.
- Claim: 10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising steps of: h) subjecting the first organic phase solution to extraction using a HCl aqueous solution as an eluent so as to obtain a first aqueous extraction including the indium ions; and i) subjecting the second organic phase solution to extraction using a HCl aqueous solution as an eluent so as to obtain a second aqueous extraction including the gallium ions.
- Claim: 11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising steps of: j) subjecting the first aqueous extraction to chemical precipitation using ammonium hydroxide as a precipitation reagent so as to obtain a first precipitate including indium hydroxide; k) subjecting the second aqueous extraction to chemical precipitation using ammonium hydroxide as a precipitation reagent so as to obtain a second precipitate including gallium hydroxide; and l) subjecting the third acid solution to chemical precipitation using ammonium hydroxide as a precipitation reagent so as to obtain a third precipitate including copper hydroxide.
- Claim: 12. The method according to claim 10, further comprising steps of: m) subjecting the first precipitate to calcination so as to obtain indium oxide; n) subjecting the second precipitate to calcination so as to obtain gallium oxide; and o) subjecting the third precipitate to calcination so as to obtain copper oxide.
- Claim: 13. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in step b), the cooling treatment is implemented using a cooling medium selected from the group consisting of liquid nitrogen, liquid argon, liquid oxygen, liquid carbon dioxide, and combinations thereof.
- Claim: 14. A method for recovering a resource from a CIGS thin-film solar cell to be recycled, the method comprising steps of: i) providing a light absorbing unit recovered from the CIGS thin-film solar cell, the recovered light absorbing unit having a CIGS photovoltaic layer which includes copper, indium, gallium, and selenide; ii) subjecting the recovered light absorbing unit to an annealing treatment at a temperature ranging from 800° C. to 950° C. in an oxygen ambient to remove the selenide in the light absorbing unit and to collect selenium oxide, thereby obtaining an intermediate including oxides of copper, indium, and gallium; iii) dissolving copper, indium, and gallium ions from the intermediate using an inorganic acid aqueous solution as a solvent so as to obtain a first acid solution including the copper, indium, and gallium ions; and iv) subjecting the first acid solution to extraction using di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid as an eluent whilst keeping aqueous phase pH value to be not greater than 1 so as to obtain a first organic phase solution including the indium ions, and a second acid solution including the copper and gallium ions.
- Claim: 15. The method according to claim 14, before step i), further comprising steps of: i-1) providing the CIGS thin-film solar cell which includes a front substrate, the light absorbing unit disposed rearwardly of the front substrate, a first adhesive layer sandwiched between the front substrate and the light absorbing unit, a rear substrate unit disposed rearwardly of the light absorbing unit, and including at least one rear substrate and a second adhesive layer, and an electrical contact layer sandwiched between the light absorbing unit and the rear substrate unit, wherein a bonding force between the electrical contact layer and the light absorbing unit is smaller than a bonding force between the electrical contact layer and the rear substrate unit; i-2) subjecting the CIGS thin-film solar cell to a cooling treatment at a predetermined temperature lower than a brittleness temperature of the second adhesive layer such that the light absorbing unit is separated from the electrical contact layer as a result of a thermal strain produced between the electrical contact layer and the rear substrate unit; and i-3) removing the first adhesive layer using a solvent so as to obtain the recovered light absorbing unit.
- Claim: 16. The method according to claim 14, further comprising a step of v) subjecting the second acid solution to extraction using di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid as an eluent whilst keeping aqueous phase pH value to be less than 7 and greater than 1 so as to obtain a second organic phase solution including the gallium ions, and a third acid solution including the copper ions.
- Claim: 17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising steps of: vi) subjecting the first organic phase solution to extraction using a HCl aqueous solution as an eluent so as to obtain a first aqueous extraction including the indium ions; and vii) subjecting the second organic phase solution to extraction using a HCl aqueous solution as an eluent so as to obtain a second aqueous extraction including the gallium ions.
- Claim: 18. The method according to claim 17, further comprising steps of: viii) subjecting the first aqueous extraction to chemical precipitation using ammonium hydroxide as a precipitation reagent so as to obtain a first precipitate including indium hydroxide; ix) subjecting the second aqueous extraction to chemical precipitation using ammonium hydroxide as a precipitation reagent so as to obtain a second precipitate including gallium hydroxide; and x) subjecting the third acid solution to chemical precipitation using ammonium hydroxide as a precipitation reagent so as to obtain a third precipitate including copper hydroxide.
- Claim: 19. The method according to claim 18, further comprising steps of: xi) subjecting the first precipitate to calcination so as to obtain indium oxide; xii) subjecting the second precipitate to calcination so as to obtain gallium oxide; xiii) subjecting the third precipitate to calcination so as to obtain copper oxide.
- Claim: 20. The method according to claim 15, wherein, in step i-2), the cooling treatment is implemented using a cooling medium selected from the group consisting of liquid nitrogen, liquid argon, liquid oxygen, liquid carbon dioxide, and combinations thereof.
- Current International Class: 01; 01; 01; 01; 32; 09; 01; 01
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