Not yet. The incumbent solar panel design does not allow for high-grade recycling, making it unfeasible to make solar cells (the most precious component) out of recycled materials in large quantities. For the other components we are looking for suppliers that use recycled materials. And of course, our design enables repeated recycling for the future. Do you want to supply us with recycled components, please get in touch!

No, our focus is on making circularity a possibility, not on recycling ourselves. Current solar panels are constructed in a way that makes them very difficult to recycle. This has to do with a lamination layer adhering the cells and backsheet to the front glass. This lamination is very difficult to separate from the solar cells (the most precious component). Therefore, we take a different approach to circularity in the solar industry. Instead of trying to find better ways to recycle current solar panels, we make them easier to take apart at the end-of-life. This not only makes recycling easier (and cheaper), but also enables upgrades, repairs, refurbishment, and component re-use.

We offer both a warranty and take-back agreement, making sure all solar panels will end up in circular end-of-life treatment. For the end-of-life, we work with numerous partners who can repair & refurbish panels, take components apart for re-use, upgrade outdated solar panels, and recycle broken components. Our aim is to keep all precious materials and components in the solar industry, including silicon, metals and glass.

We want to make disassembly of lamination-free solar panels broadly accessible for companies and individuals all over the world. We offer full disassembly instructions and a product passport that tells the user the origin of each component. However, solar panels are mass-produced items and require precision in the manufacturing and remanufacturing process. Therefore, we expect that the most economically feasible disassembly processes will be at large scale.

We work with suppliers that can trace the origins of all the raw materials in their components. All of this information is embedded in a blockchain-based product passport that securely and transparently stores the information. The standards for labour conditions in the Biosphere Solar supply chain are laid down in our code-of-conduct for suppliers.

We have worked hard to standardise our design as much as possible so it can be produced at large scale by existing industries. Moreover, our lamination-free design replaces EVA lamination with an edge seal. This reduces the capital intensity, footprint, energy costs, and throughput of the manufacturing site. Furthermore, the cost of materials for a lamination-free panel is more or less equal to that of a laminated  panel. Thus, when produced at scale, Biosphere Solar's modular solar panels are not more expensive than laminated panels.

Biosphere Solar strives for the highest sustainability standards possible, while keeping the panels affordable for the mass market. In solar panels, there are 4 types of toxic materials that commonly occur. These are; antimony (Sb) in the glass, lead (Pb) in the solder, halogens in the cables, and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) on the glass and other components. Biosphere Solar panels use lead-free solder, halogen-free cables and are fully PFAS-free. This means Biosphere voluntarily complies with RoHS and CPR regulation. Antimony is more difficult to omit because using antimony-free glass significantly reduces the affordability of the product. Therefore, Biosphere Solar closely monitors the content of antimony in its products and registers this in the product passport to make the glass available for dedicated re-use and recycling streams at end-of-life.

We are currently working hard to certify the product according to the IEC 61215 quality and IEC 63017 safety standard. Many companies experience unexpected delays in the certification procedure, so we don’t want to overpromise. However we are expecting our product to be certified Q2 of 2025. For further questions about the product specifications and quality, please refer to our datasheet.

Biosphere Solar offers a best-in-class 35-year product warranty. The reason lamination-free solar panels last longer than laminated panels is because laminated panels suffer from yellowing or browning, caused by acetic acid formed in the EVA as a result of UV radiation. Over the lifetime, this causes performance to degrade, and eventually causes the lamination to peel off. Biosphere Solar's laminate-free panels do not suffer from this issue. Moreover, since we use some of the highest quality edge-seals in the industry we can safely say the panel will last more than 35 years in the field.

We currently have 3 production sites with a total capacity of 2.5GW/year. However, we are still working on installing the last equipment to get these production lines fully up and running. The largest part of our production capacity is in China and produces our standard lines of residential and utility modules. Additionally, our European production sites can offer custom module designs according to customer requirements.

Our custom production lines can make modules in multiple sizes. Additionally, we can space the solar cells to customer requirements to create semi-transparent modules. We can also offer solar panels with print on it in any colour and according to any image. This slightly reduces the module efficiency, but can greatly improve the aesthetic quality of the installation. If you are interested in custom modules, get in touch with our team about your requirements by filling out the ‘request a quote’ form above.