An international comparative study of end-of-life vehicle (ELV) recycling systems

Abstract

End-of-life vehicles (ELV) have become aglobal concern as automobiles have become popularworldwide. An international workshop was held to gatherdata and to discuss 3R policies and ELV recycling systems,their background and present situation, outcomes of relatedpolicies and programs, the framework of recycling andwaste management, and case studies on related topics inseveral countries and regions, as well as the essential pointsof the comparison. Legislative ELV recycling systems areestablished in the EU, Japan, Korea, and China, while inthe US, ELV recycling is managed under existing laws onenvironmental protection. Since automobile shreddingresidue (ASR) has a high calorific value and ash content,and includes heavy metals as well as a mass of unclassifiedfine particles, recycling ASR is considered highly difficult.Countries with a legislative ELV system commonly set atarget for recovery rates, with many aiming for more than95 % recovery. In order to reach this target, higher efficiencyin ASR recovery is needed, in addition to materialrecycling of collectable components and metals. Environmentallyfriendly design was considered necessary at theplanning and manufacturing stages, and the development ofrecycling systems and techniques in line with these changesare required for sound ELV management.<P>Quelle: http://www.springerlink.com/