Silver recovery from photovoltaic modules: Recent advances and future trends

[EN] The global expansion of photovoltaic technologies, driven by decarbonization goals, has intensified concerns regarding the management of end-of-life photovoltaic modules, whose waste is projected to reach 8 million tonnes by 2030 and 78 million tonnes by 2050. Although current recycling practices mainly focus on highvolume materials such as glass and aluminum, silver recovery remains limited despite its high economic value and its essential role in photovoltaic cell performance. This review applies the SALSA framework to provide a structured assessment of technological, environmental, and bibliometric advances related to photovoltaic module or solar panel recycling processes, as well as Ag extraction from crystalline silicon modules, reported between 2020 and 2025. The analysis includes the comparison of different recycling and recovery strategies, with emphasis on pre-treatment stages for component separation and on hydrometallurgical extraction routes employed to recover Ag efficiently and selectively. Furthermore, aspects such as recovery efficiency, process selectivity, environmental impact, and the main operational limitations associated with each methodology are evaluated. The results show that, although significant progress has been achieved in material recovery technologies for photovoltaic modules, important challenges still remain for the sustainable and economically viable recovery of Ag. Among the main limitations identified are the lack of standardized metrics for process comparison, the limited availability of complete mass balances, and the scarce number of integrated technoeconomic and environmental assessments.