Journal Article
Maximizing Automotive Parts Reuse, Remanufacturing, and Recycling Through Effective End-of-Life Vehicle Management: A Different Perspective on What Needs to be Done
2015-01-01
2014-01-9101
Life-cycle assessments (LCAs) conducted, to date, of the end-of-life phase of vehicles rely significantly on assumed values and extrapolations within models. The end phase of vehicles, however, has become all the more important as a consequence of increasing regulatory requirements on materials recovery, tightening disposal restrictions, and the rapid introduction of new materials and electronics, all potentially impacting a vehicle's efficacy for achieving greater levels of sustainability. This article presents and discusses selected research results of a comprehensive gate-to-gate life-cycle-inventory (LCI) of end-of-life vehicle (ELV) dismantling and shredding processes, constructed through a comprehensive and detailed case study, and argues that managing and implementing creative dismantling practices can improve significantly the recovery of both reusable and recyclable materials from end-of-life vehicles.