System dynamics model for the management of critical raw materials in Europe
El Wali, Mohammad (2017)
Diplomityö
2017
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe201802123350
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe201802123350
Tiivistelmä
The high industrial development associated with the population growth requires more access to natural resources. Some of these resources are non-renewable and thus, with the continuous consumption, finite resources might experience depletion and scarcity in future, leading to the risk of supplying the associated materials to global communities. Considering the high importance of some raw materials, EU has established a list of critical raw materials (CRM), based on the assessment methodology that is based on two parameters (supply risk and economic importance). Until now, there are no substantial reserves of most of the CRMs within the EU, and thus, imports of material is important to meet the EU demands.
In this study, the main goal is to present quantitative estimations of CRM’s flow in the EU at their different life cycle stages. Given the high complexity of the material life cycles, and the various parameters interacting with the flow of materials, system dynamics methodology is used to model the life cycle of materials in EU. For this purpose, three materials are chosen, Phosphorus (P), Antimony (Sb) and Lithium (Li). The results of the study estimate the amount of material entering the life cycle, material loss, material recycled and material landfilled. Lastly, three scenarios are applied to compare the levels of recycled material in the main stocks in-use. The findings of this study imply that a better management of CRMs at different stages in the EU should be taken into consideration. For the P life cycle, material loss should be seriously considered, and decreasing this loss from the post consumption stages in food is highly recommended. For the Sb life cycle, a better management on the collecting rates, with investing in new technologies for recycling improvement in the lead-acid batteries sector, and other sectors is recommended. For the Li life cycle, Investing in new technologies for improving Li-ion batteries recycling is beneficial to lessen the dependency on imports and extraction.
In this study, the main goal is to present quantitative estimations of CRM’s flow in the EU at their different life cycle stages. Given the high complexity of the material life cycles, and the various parameters interacting with the flow of materials, system dynamics methodology is used to model the life cycle of materials in EU. For this purpose, three materials are chosen, Phosphorus (P), Antimony (Sb) and Lithium (Li). The results of the study estimate the amount of material entering the life cycle, material loss, material recycled and material landfilled. Lastly, three scenarios are applied to compare the levels of recycled material in the main stocks in-use. The findings of this study imply that a better management of CRMs at different stages in the EU should be taken into consideration. For the P life cycle, material loss should be seriously considered, and decreasing this loss from the post consumption stages in food is highly recommended. For the Sb life cycle, a better management on the collecting rates, with investing in new technologies for recycling improvement in the lead-acid batteries sector, and other sectors is recommended. For the Li life cycle, Investing in new technologies for improving Li-ion batteries recycling is beneficial to lessen the dependency on imports and extraction.