Page 23 from: April 2013

23April 2013

(UNEP) and compiled by its International

Resource Panel, recycling rates are far below their

potential in many cases. Less than one-third of

some 60 metals studied have an end-of-life recy-

cling rate above 50% and 34 elements are under

1%, yet many of them are crucial to clean tech-

nologies such as batteries for hybrid cars and

magnets in wind turbines, says the report enti-

tled ‘Recycling Rates of Metals’. It concludes: ‘In

spite of significant efforts in a number of coun-

tries and regions, many metal recycling rates are

discouragingly low, and a “recycling society”

appears no more than a distant hope.’

The originators of the EU’s End-of-Life Vehicles

(ELV) Directive were focused on improving the

whole recycling chain. Therefore, Europe’s ELV

legislation contributes towards maximising dis-

mantling and recovery for the sake of the envi-

ronment and sustainable development. Indeed,

the catalytic converter is listed in Annex I as one

of the various components earmarked for

removal prior to shredding. ‘However, the direc-

tive is not providing enough insight on mate-

rial flows,’ stated Dr Meskers. That means that

the recycling rate counts only for vehicles recy-

cled within a country. The actual recycling rate

of exported ELVs is not taken into consideration.

‘The recycling rate approach is not necessarily

capturing scarce metals,’ continued Dr Meskers,

who is Umicore’s business development man-

ager and is actively engaged in industry asso-

ciations and working groups such as StEP and

the UNEP-OECD Resource Panel. ‘Further-

more, a mass-based target means that only main

materials such as steel, aluminium or plastics

do really matter to reach the required recycling

ratios, but it has no impact on the recovery of

trace elements,’ she said. Therefore, a significant

value can obviously become lost to the statistics.

Not at top levels
The recycling chains for specific components

and metals have their own unique issues, with

automotive catalysts providing a good example

of these difficulties, according to Dr Meskers.

‘Despite high value and recyclability, overall

PGM recovery including collection has not

reached top levels yet if we take a worldwide

perspective,’ she said. The ‘low’ recovery of PGMs

is mainly due to the export of ELVs to countries

where catalyst recovery is not mandated and/

or where catalysts are destroyed through use.

But that is not the only problem as the often-

opaque recycling chain can result in inefficien-

cies. It seems that the high value of the auto

catalyst and insufficient tracking facilitate some

dubious activities in this market area, with Dr

Meskers’ non-exhaustive list extending from

thefts from car parks and scrap yards to tax

fraud, VAT carousels and money laundering –

practices that harm the interests of reputable

and responsible companies involved in the

recycling of catalytic converters, she suggested.

Another problem area is high-value losses from

car electronics. According to Dr Meskers, the

ELV recycling chain has not yet been able to

fully exploit the advantages of recovering elec-

tronics even though they contain a significant

value. More than 10 electrical control units are

installed in a vehicle, with a gold content com-

parable to compu-

ter motherboards.

Car electronics

contain many

scarce metals but

they represent only

1% of the total car

weight and are

often not recov-

ered. The reasons

for this are plain:

dismantling is

Dr Meskers: ‘ELV challenges need to be
met with cross-disciplinary approaches
in product design.’

‘It is critical to secure
resources if we want

to produce more
vehicles with newer

technologies.’

UNEP mining facts
• A report by the UNEP International Resource Panel

notes that extraction of ores and minerals grew 27-fold
during the 20th century – a rate higher than world
economic growth.

• Extraction from virgin ores alone currently accounts for
7% of the world’s energy consumption, with emissions
thought to contribute signifi cantly to climate change.

• The era of cheap and easily accessible ores is running
out. For example, about three times more material
needs to be moved for the same ore extraction than a
century ago, with corresponding increases in land dis-
ruption, water impacts and energy use.

• The complexity of ores is increasing while ore grades
are declining.

• It is not yet possible to estimate how close industry is
to a shortage of specialty or rare-earth metals, mainly
because so little is known about the potential for min-
ing to continue as their main source.

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