Resumo:
With the exponential growth of photovoltaic solar energy, the challenge of disposing of photovoltaic panels at the end of their useful life has arisen. It is known that this equipment could generate millions of tons of waste by 2050. Therefore, it is essential to understand how the recycling of first-generation panels, composed of crystalline silicon (c-Si), occurs in practice. This study identified the recycling process adopted by 37 companies that make up the ranking of the 10 countries with the highest photovoltaic generation capacity in 2023, through a quantitative survey, complemented by searches on company websites and data validation using the artificial intelligence tool, Copilot®. The objective was to identify the types of recycling employed, the materials effectively recovered, the legislation complied with, and the main difficulties encountered by the companies. The results show that, although 93% of companies report carrying out upcycling, in practice recycling is still selective, focusing on the recovery of glass, aluminum, and copper (materials recycled by 89% of the sample). On the other hand, toxic metals such as lead and tin have low recovery rates (35% and 38%, respectively), highlighting technological limitations and regulatory barriers. It was also observed that, despite the existence of legislation that encourages recycling, its implementation faces obstacles related to the lack of regulatory standardization and high logistical costs. Multivariate statistical analysis confirmed the interdependence between reverse logistics, economic feasibility, and regulatory compliance. The findings of this research reinforce the need to strengthen public policies, increase process transparency, improve toxic material recovery technologies, and promote collaboration between companies, government, and research institutions in order to consolidate a more efficient and sustainable recycling chain for photovoltaic panels.
