• Vatanen, Saija
• Tonteri, Hannele

Abstract

The main goal of increasing the recyclability of vehiclesis to decrease their environmental impact during theirlife cycle and to take the sustainable development ofresources into consideration in the use of raw materials.In the life cycle assessment of a passenger car, itsenvironmental impacts during its life cycle were found tobe highest when it was in use. In an effort to cut downthe amount and hazardous nature of exhaust emissions,vehicles have been improved technically in a number ofways, particularly through modifications of the engine.Fuel consumption has been decreased by reducing theweight of vehicles, which has led to a decrease inexhaust emissions. In addition to technical improvements,the dissemination of information on a more economicaldriving style has been a contributing factor in thelowering of fuel consumption. The hazardous nature ofexhaust emissions has been mitigated by developingadditives that replace lead for use in petrol.Additionally, new technology has been introduced invehicles so as to curb the detrimental effects of exhaustemissions.In addition to the environmental impacts generated duringuse, other stages of the life cycle of a car have animpact on the environment. The manufacturing of metals,starting from when ore is mined up until to the finishedproduct, is a lengthy and energy intensive process. Morethan half of the particle emissions generated result fromthe processing of raw materials, as does approximately 40% of sulphur dioxide emissions. Of liquid emissions, oilwastes, heavy metals and other organic matter originatemainly in the processing of raw materials and parts orcomponents. Emissions produced when the car is scrappedare small in comparison to those generated in theprocessing or use of raw materials and parts orcomponents.In determining the recyclability of a car, the quantityof waste produced in connection with its disposal,scrapping, is considered. According to the car's lifecycle assessment, waste produced during the life cycle ofa car is generated mainly in connection with theprocessing of raw materials and fuel. The amount of wasteaccumulated during the life cycle of a car is nearlythree times its body weight. It follows that the amountof waste produced during post-use processing, orscrapping, averages only 10% of the total amount of wastegenerated throughout the life cycle of a car. The amountof waste from servicing and repairs during the life cycleof a car is close to that produced during scrapping.From an economic standpoint, the recycling of a car isproblematic with the exception of its metal parts.Presently, the parts of a car recovered include themetal, tyres and the lead contained in the battery,whereas the rest of the car is dumped as waste. Severalentities are currently looking into the possibility ofusing, for example by burning, the scrapped waste, amixture of non-metallic materials used in the manufactureof a vehicle, typically including such materials asplastic, rubber, textile and glass. The mixture is of nosignificance in terms of the waste flow, but thepossibility of using it has attracted attention owing tothe fact that there is general interest in raising therecycling rate of the product.To increase consumption of secondary materials in themanufacturing processes of metals, it is importantmaintain the quality scrap unalloyed. The use of mixedscrap will lead to the concentration of undesirablesubstances, as copper, tin, lead, zinc, in the rawmaterial. These substances may weaken the materialproperties of the metal being manufactured or causeprocess technical or industrial hygiene problems in themanufacturing processes.An ideal recycling system entails a closed system, inwhich the recycling of each removed part or component isrecycled either as spare parts or as a material. Thiswould ensure the best possible use of the material, forexample the mixture ratio, of the part or component,while the amount of new primary material manufacturedusing the same mixture ratio could be decreased.In future, economically profitable disassembly proceduresshould be found. One of the main goals in the developmentof product design that promotes recycling, that is designfor recycling, is to enable the systematic sorting ofmaterials used in vehicles in order to achieve acompetitive quality and price level for the sortedmaterial as compared to that of the corresponding.

Topics

• impedance spectroscopy
• zinc
• glass
• glass
• copper
• tin
• rubber
• Sulphur