BIPV-EOL
When should a PV system continue operating? When is repowering or reuse advisable? A decision-making model evaluates technical, economic and environmental criteria to identify the optimal end-of-life strategy.
Factsheet
- Schools involved School of Engineering and Computer Science
- Institute(s) Institute for Data Applications and Security (IDAS)
- Research unit(s) IDAS / Management Science, Innovation, Sustainability and Entrepreneurship (MSIE)
- Strategic thematic field Thematic field "Sustainable Development"
- Funding organisation Others
- Duration (planned) 01.05.2026 - 30.09.2026
- Head of project Dr. Ässia Boukhatmi
- Partner IWB
- Keywords Photovoltaics · BIPV · Circular economy · Reuse · Recycling · Decision-making model
Situation
Photovoltaic systems are increasingly becoming an integral component of buildings and façades. However, as the systems age, the question arises as to what should happen to them at the end of their initial service life. At present, decisions regarding continued operation, decommissioning, repowering, reuse or dismantling are often based on individual technical or economic criteria. As yet, there is no comprehensive, systematic basis for decision-making that takes technical safety, cost-effectiveness and environmental impacts into account as a whole.
Course of action
The project aims to develop a data-driven decision-making model for end-of-life PV systems. The first step is to assess whether it is technically possible to continue operations safely. Factors taken into account include the age of the PV system, the type of system and module, the warranty, as well as operational and monitoring data. The next step consists in assessing economic and environmental criteria for the technically viable options. Factors taken into account include, amongst other things, investment and decommissioning costs, expected returns, remaining service life and the carbon emissions associated with the various options. The model combines this information to produce a clear recommendation for the future use of the PV system.
Result
The result is a structured decision-making model that systematically compares various end-of-life options. It sets out the conditions under which continued operation, repowering, reuse or decommissioning followed by recycling is advisable. The model provides a decision-making basis that combines technical safety with economic and environmental criteria, and supports in particular owners, operators and investors in planning refurbishment and decommissioning measures.
Looking ahead
The decision-making model is meant to be applicable to additional PV systems and different types of buildings in the future. The use of real operational and system data is intended to continuously improve the quality of decision-making. In the long term, the model has the potential to contribute to extending the service life of PV systems, to put functional components to secondary use and to avoid unnecessary consumption of resources and carbon emissions.
