First off I'd just like to say that I get why cells aren't reusable and I get that you get a bunch of cells from each recipe.
Now the idea here is to basically make cells semi reusable but still a depleting resource that takes time and energy to recycle used cells.
For starters we have 2 new items: tin scrap and tin slag
The tin scrap you get after using a cell, for recipes you always get a scrap back from each cell used however for machines there's a much lower chance with Lava generators having the lowest chance of return while less high heat machines like those used in fuel production have almost a 50-50 chance.
Then we have Tin slag which is gotten after you run tin scrap through a Recycler. The Recycler still has the same chance of successfully getting an output however in this case you don't lose tin slag on each failed cycle (unlike when you use things like dirt in it).
Then in the final stage of the recycling process you toss the tin slag into a furnace to cook it into a tin heap which can then be crafted with 4 of them into tin dust or can be crafted straight into a new Cell.