Concrete mixtures with photovoltaic panels glass: a review of the situation in Czech Republic

Abstract

Solar energy production was initiated in the 1990s following by rapid increase of the use of photovoltaic (PV) technology. Most of older solar panels in the Czech Republic were installed between 2000 and 2006 and a global installed capacity of 222 GW was reached by the end of 2015. With the growing global PV market, a large amount of waste is expected to accumulate after 2030 which is associated with the new industry to process this waste, based on reduce, reuse, and recycle. This article summarizes findings and research conclusions regarding local issues collected by experts from the Czech Republic. Previous research showed that waste glass from photovoltaic panels can be used as a pozzolanic material in high-performance concrete, improving its properties. Further research on the use of waste from photovoltaic panels has been conducted in the Czech Republic since 2019 and the conclusions from various research confirm the suitability of using PV panel glass.