Value from shredder waste: opportunities and barriers

1

• Value from shredder waste opportunities and
  barriers
• O.T. Forton, N.R. Moles and M.K.
  HarderWaste Energy Research Group
  Applied Geology Research Unit University of
  Brighton

WARMNET CONFERENCE TACKLING WASTE 2004.
University of Nottingham. July 20 2004
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Outline of Presentation

• Legislation and waste management
• ELV Directive Objectives and mechanisms
• The shredding process-ASR/SR generation
• Value from ASR-possible markets
• Barriers to ASR recycling
• Chemical characterisation of ASR/SR
• Summary

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Legislative Drivers

• Legislation impacts waste generation and handling
• European Waste Catalogue
• Packaging and Packaging waste directive(94/62/EC)
  
• Landfill directive (99/31/EC)
• Hazardous waste directive (91/689/EEC)
• End of life vehicle (ELV) Directive (2000/53/EC)

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ELV Directive-Objectives

• 30 M ELVs per annum world wide, 2 M in the UK
• ELV Directive 2000/53/EC
• -Sets standard methods for disposing of ELVs
• -Complete depollution
• -Removal of harmful
• Substances
• -Increase ELV recycling
• and recovery rates

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ELV Directive-Implementation Mechanisms

• Producer responsibility
• -new blueprint?
• -Free take back schemes
• Depollution centres
• -Authorised treatment facilities
• -Waste management licences
• -Certificates of destruction
• Design for recycling
• -Closed loop recycling of materials

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The Shredding Process

• Automotive shredder residue or shredder residue?

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ASR Arisings

• 0.45M tonnes
• in the UK/annum
• (0.12 of total waste arisings)
• Heating value 9- 20GJ/tonne
• of ASR

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Composition of ASR (coarse and oversize)
of overall ASR waste WERG (2004)
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Material Recovery from ASR

• Material separation is key to recycling processes
• Different processes can be used

• Galloo process and Salyp process

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Markets for ASR plastics

• Plastics account for about 12 of ELVs (only
  0.1 is currently recovered)
• Different variety of plastics available for
  recycling
• Identifiable markets
• Engineering type plastics-quality specifications
• Closed loop recycling in the automobile industry
• Injection moulding recycling of plastics for new
  markets
• park benches, lamppost, road traffic signs, and
  construction materials

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Markets for other ASR components

• Fines
• Feedstock for cement production
• Energy source high polymeric content
• Promising thermal processes exist
• Polyurethane foam
• recovery and rebonding
• automotive carpet pads, sound suppression
• Glass, Textiles
• Closed loop recycling
• Aggregate material for road construction

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Limitations for ASR reuse

• Lack of relevant and quality data (monitoring
  waste flows)
• Viability of potential markets
• Unfavourable economics?
• Legislation is an incentive to ASR recycling
• Metal contamination levels (especially Pb) in
  some fractions
• Understanding the nature of this contamination is
  vital for recycling
• Contaminant levels
• Forms (major compounds)

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Overcoming recycling barriers

• Chemical characterisation
• Analytical techniques
• EDXRF
• SEM-BSE, EDX
• Raman spectroscopy
• Characterisation of 3 streams
• Depolluted ASR
• Non depolluted ASR
• SR (general shredder
• feedstock)

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Summary

• Legislation has a major impact on recycling
• Different material types can be recovered from
  ASR
• Barriers to ASR recycling-economic or technical?
• What levels of metal contaminations exist in ASR
  and its implications?
• University of Brighton Dissemination Seminar
• 24th September 2004 at 11am
• www.brighton.ac.uk/environment/research/sustainabi
  lity/werg/