Recycling is a vital component of a Circular Economy and one of the three pillars of the EU’s Raw Materials Initiative and part of its legislation. It requires a whole recycling process chain: logistics and collection, dismantling, pre-processing and recycling technology. The challenge in recovery yields today is that the higher the recovery rate, the lower the purity; a proper balance needs to be found. Therefore, recyclability should be taken into account in the design phase of the products. Re-use or service-based business models constitute another way of retaining value in the economy.
Learning objectives:
- Explain the broad legislative framework of recycling in Europe
- Recognize the importance of recycling for and within the Circular Economy
- Explain the different process steps recycling requires
- Know about the problems in recycling today
- Suggest solutions