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- Compañero, Reinol Josef, et al.
(författare)
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A value of information approach to recycling
- 2024
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Ingår i: Resources, Conservation and Recycling. - : Elsevier BV. - 0921-3449 .- 1879-0658. ; 209
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Uncertainties with respect to the chemical composition of scrap limit its suitability as an input to recycling. This study offers an alternative approach in dealing with this concern and explores the hypothetical case where this uncertainty is nonexistent. The effect of fully knowing the scrap composition is simulated using an optimization software adopted to scrap-based, stainless-steel production. Through the systematic implementation of this information-driven model in the studied cases, the results suggest that with access to perfect information, recycling incentives can be realized. Essentially, the steel scraps’ consumption increased since it was possible to select and combine scrap quantities with varying composition profiles to achieve the targeted product compositions. This also meant that elements already in the scrap were allocated in a manner that was less dependent on pure alloy additions. Being able to demonstrate the value of information on scrap composition could rationalize upgrades on current scrap management systems.
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| 2. |
- Compañero, Reinol Josef, et al.
(författare)
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Appraising the value of compositional information and its implications to scrap-based production of steel
- 2023
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Ingår i: Mineral Economics. - : Springer Nature. - 2191-2203 .- 2191-2211.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The current nature of steel design and production is a response to meet increasingly demanding applications but without much consideration of end-of-life scenarios. The scrap handling infrastructure, particularly the characterization and sorting, is unable to match the complexity of scrapped products. This is manifested in problems of intermixing and contamination in the scrap flows, especially for obsolete scrap. Also, the segmentation of scrap classes in standards with respect to chemical compositions is based on tolerance ranges. Thus, variation in scrap composition exists even within the same scrap type. This study applies the concept of expected value of perfect information (EPVI) to the context of steel recycling. More specifically, it sets out to examine the difference between having partial and full information on scrap composition by using a raw material optimization software. Three different scenarios with different constraints were used to appraise this difference in terms of production and excess costs. With access to perfect information, production costs decreased by 8–10%, and excess costs became negligible. Overall, comparing the respective results gave meaningful insights on the value of reestablishing the compositional information of scrap at the end of its use phase. Furthermore, the results provided relevant findings and contribute to the ongoing discussions on the seemingly disparate prioritization of economic and environmental incentives with respect to the recycling of steel.
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| 3. |
- Compañero, Reinol Josef, et al.
(författare)
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Circular Steel: How Information and Actor Incentives Impact the Recyclability of Scrap
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Sustainable Metallurgy. - : Springer Nature. - 2199-3823 .- 2199-3831.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recycling plays a vital role in preserving resources like steel and consequently in a circular economy. Scrap dealers and steel mills, the main business units in this system, often encounter opposing financial and sustainability incentives in using scrap as feedstock because regular sorting and scrap-preparation infrastructure cannot deal with the increasing complexity of steel scrap. Mismatches between the inputs and the target composition of the recycled steel result in trade-offs that favor the economics at the expense of resource efficiency. By examining literature and interviewing several actors, different scrap characteristics were identified as dimensions of scrap quality. Quality is typically associated with chemical composition, which is important, but this study aims to elaborate the concept of quality further and to connect it to the realities of scrapyard operations. Industry actors have different definitions for desired content, physical condition, shape and size, and homogeneity, based on their needs. Very few studies examine these details. Additionally, the relationship of quality and the level of information about the characteristics of the material was established. Having more definitive information on scrap increases opportunities for resource-efficient actions. This work offers an alternative perspective on how to address issues pertinent to recycling.
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| 4. |
- Compañero, Reinol Josef, 1987-
(författare)
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Recirculation of scrapped resources : The role of material information in enhancing the sustainability of recycling
- 2024
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Industries have responded to the climate change problem by positioning their activities as compatible with concepts such as the Circular Economy. Conveying the idea of maximizing and keeping the resources in a manner that aligns with the principles of sustainable development, the endorsements for implementing circularity measures has arguably become a boon for businesses. Firms that have traditionally consumed both primary and anthropogenic resources in the production of materials used in infrastructure, transportation, and other technological requirements are in a special position. On the one hand, their products are needed for societal development. But on the other hand, their activities emit considerable amounts of greenhouse gases.The steel industry is a classic example where material and energy resource savings are achieved when the End-of-Life (EoL) products are recycled. However, these assumed efficiencies are provisional to scrap being a suitable replacement for ore-based resources. The replacement of primary (i.e. purer) - with secondary (i.e. contaminated) as feedstock for production depends heavily on a recycling system’s capability to deal with the complexity of the ferrous scrap streams that society is generating. More specifically, in reference to recovering the material identity through characterization and sorting that lessens or avoids the current practice of either diluting contaminants or compensating for insufficient alloying through addition of primary resources.This present thesis takes a critical look at the use of scrap with the view that recycling is a technical process that is carried out by enterprises. The impression that recycling consequently replaces the use of primary resources is scrutinized, with consideration of scrap as a characteristically appropriate, but innately challenging feedstock to use. Case studies focusing on the Swedish scrap-based production context revealed that the recycling system actors operate and transact on the basis ofscrap’s quality, which in turn was interpreted as being multidimensional and dependent on each actor’s preferences. The alignment of economic and environmental interests connected with scrap utilization was found to be limited, with companies preferring the use of primary resources when scrap is no longer suitable.The idea of suitability was then ascribed to compositional information regarding scrap and tested at two levels: having access to partial or full information. The former is what is achieved through the current scrap handling in the reverse loop while the latter is an idealized situation where the exact chemistry of the scrap is known. An optimization program was then used to simulate steel recycling where the scenarios tested were designed to focus on the response of the production model to the scrap chemistry of the input materials. The results obtained showed an overall decrease in production costs and an increase in the proportion of scrap used in production. In most cases, this was attributed to the flexibility to allocate scrap based on its composition to the closest matching target products.Finally, additional interviews with industry practitioners further clarified established, company-based protocols for dealing with the lack of information and provided insights with regard to opportunities for increasing scrap utilization. An analysis of the responses suggested that there are contextual differences when it comes to practices by each company, and even attitudes, towards anthropogenic resources. Ultimately, the insights from this thesis lend support to the need of enterprises to address the trade-offs related to scrap utilization and lead to enhanced sustainability in steel recycling.
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