Evaluating PV Module Sample Removal Methods for TCLP Testing

Solar photovoltaic (PV) deployment has grown exponentially since the early 2000s. Installed PV modules pose practically no health or environmental risks. However, the potential leaching of toxic chemicals and materials from broken end-of-life landfilled modules could pose health or environmental risks. As per existing EPA 1311 regulations, PV modules are categorized as general waste and are subjected to a Toxicity Characterization Leaching Procedure (TCLP) to determine if they contain any toxic metals that can possibly leach into the landfill. Depending on the toxicity result, modules may be classified as (1) universal waste, or as (2) hazardous waste. Currently, there is no standard procedure to remove samples from PV modules for chemical toxicity testing in the laboratories. In this paper, four different removal methods are presented along with their influence on the variability of toxicity test results for five different module manufacturers.