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End of Life Products and Processes in the Emerging Circular Economy

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2022) | Viewed by 19162

Special Issue Editors

Civil and Environmental Engineering, Cross appointed, Mechanical Engineering, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON N9B 3P4, Canada
Interests: sustainability and resiliency in infrastructure systems and engineering; materials end-of-life waste management and recovery/vehicle recycling; life cycle assessment and approaches; brownfields renewal and redevelopment
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON N9B 3P4, Canada
Interests: infrastructure lifecycle management using building information modelling (BIM); lifecycle assessment of engineering systems; multistakeholder management in sustainable procurement; risk-based decision making
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON N9B 3P4, Canada
Interests: water and wastewater treatment; ozonation and advanced oxidation processes; microbial contamination and remediation; contaminant fate during sewage treatment process—monitoring/modelling/removal

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The circular economy (CE) has emerged as one of the driving concepts behind a renewed focus on sustainability and is increasingly adopted by nations, organizations, and countries worldwide as the new approach towards environmental, economic, and even social parity. Does embracing the CE produce significant benefits beyond our current efforts, though? There are already programs and approaches operating currently in this circularity-oriented space, ranging from the Blue Box curbside recycling program, to disciplines such as industrial ecology, to current efforts that help to guide engineers in their designs. However, CE’s more substantive, comprehensive approach for circularity encompasses organic cycles, as well as the often-overlooked potential for reuse and refurbishment. This gives CE a much more robust context for environmental stewardship and economic growth given the intricate relationship between resource consumption and climate change. For CE to succeed, it needs to demonstrate realistic and achievable applications and outcomes that move beyond addressing simple materials and goods (e.g., textiles, beverage recyclables), to more complex, durable goods, and even processes. Meaningful and user-understandable interpretations and measures of CE need to be developed and adopted so that incorporating bio-based wastes, energy, and material re-use into circularity can be assessed consistently and critically as CE evolves into the mid-21st century.

This Special Issue on sustainability and the circular economy invites manuscripts that critically examine how end-of-life materials, products or processes can be innovatively utilized to support the circular economy. These topics include but are not limited to:

1. The Role of Packaging in the Shifting to the Circular Economy

From pop cans to plastic bags, packaging is pervasive in daily life. However, the environmental cost of resource consumption and the waste produced from packaging is enormous—according to the EPA, containers and packaging account for approximately 28% of all municipal solid waste in the US. In the effort to shift towards a circular economy, innovation in packaging design, use, and disposal are key to addressing this issue, particularly in an era where pandemic or other global crises again promote the extensive use of single-use containers and materials.

2. End of Life Waste Management for the Circular Economy or Maximizing Material Utility to Advance the Circular Economy

The current rate of material consumption and disposal is unsustainable in many aspects, from the energy and water footprints required to produce goods to natural resource depletion and the resulting end of life waste. The circular economy provides an alternative model which greatly reduces waste. One of the key principles of the circular economy, as defined by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, is keeping products and materials in use to their fullest potential. This can be addressed through a variety of systems and strategies implemented across disciplines and sectors. However, the focus remains very much on what we are accustomed to in our household or office: the “blue box” curbside or public recycling containers that focus on materials recovery. What is underexplored and underutilized are the vast capacities for product reuse, refurbishment, and repurposing. Maximizing the use of materials and products once they have been produced is key to advancing a circular economy and a more sustainable future.

3. The Circular Economy and Our Built Environment

The principles of CE apply not only to our single use, simple items, but the largest constructs designed and built, such as bridges and buildings. How can we envision, however, post-use scenarios such that our current generation of designers and engineers can future proof structures 50 to even 100 years from now so that they remain useful in the circular economy? It can and should be greater than simply breaking down walls for its component constituents for aggregate. What are the creative design principles and approaches and material selection strategies to allow future generations the ability to not only recover materials, but to effectively repurpose infrastructure?

4. Establishing the Circular Economy in Wastewater Systems through Life Cycle Assessment Driven

5. Effluent Product Valorization, Recovery and Reuse

Wastewater is treated by most major municipalities, and current methods and systems are designed to address specific constituents such as organics. They focus mainly on water reuse and reducing the impacts of effluent discharge into natural water systems. Improved methods, however, can create a secondary market for these resources by giving them both a monetary and environmental value. In addition, technologies to extract useful compounds such as metals and ammonia from sewage sludge are being developed. While wastewater treatment residuals have been used for decades, adapting life cycle assessment methods that critically compare the supply chain of waste stream reuse versus virgin resource use can help to establish waste valorization. This value provides opportunities for business, reuse, and environmental impact reduction, thus instituting the circular economy. Governmental policies that encompass these principles can ensure implementation and secondary market stability.

Prof. Dr. Edwin K.L. Tam
Dr. Rajeev Ruparathna
Prof. Dr. Rajesh Seth
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • end-of-life
  • reuse
  • refurbish
  • recycle
  • recover
  • circular economy
  • sustainability
  • design-for-recycling
  • climate change
  • resource consumption

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 2387 KiB  
Article
Challenges to the Circular Economy: Recovering Wastes from Simple versus Complex Products
by Carly Jacobs, Katie Soulliere, Susan Sawyer-Beaulieu, Abir Sabzwari and Edwin Tam
Sustainability 2022, 14(5), 2576; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14052576 - 23 Feb 2022
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 5478
Abstract
The circular economy re-interprets the recovery of materials by promoting designing out waste from products, retaining materials for reuse, and emphasizing key elements universally accepted for sustainability. The current efforts to target, isolate, and reduce single-use items, particularly plastics, have only recently begun [...] Read more.
The circular economy re-interprets the recovery of materials by promoting designing out waste from products, retaining materials for reuse, and emphasizing key elements universally accepted for sustainability. The current efforts to target, isolate, and reduce single-use items, particularly plastics, have only recently begun in earnest. Unfortunately, the recovery and recycling of materials have been disrupted by global market uncertainty, and recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. While the pandemic and its impacts complicate materials recovery, the core of the circular economy still depends on efficiently capturing and returning spent materials for production. Arguably, our perception and common understanding of the recovery process is influenced significantly by the recycling of simple consumer products, such as plastic bags and beverage bottles. However, there are greater difficulties when managing multiple materials from significantly more complex consumer products, for example, from end-of-life vehicles. This paper presents an overview of how waste recovery-related issues vary between simple versus complex consumer products. Using food packaging, tires, cell phones, furniture, and end-of-life vehicles as examples, this paper provides a commentary on the challenges facing complex product recovery compared to simple consumer products in the Canadian context in order to establish how this classification concept can be beneficial for describing a given product and its materials recovery prospects. A categorization framework is developed and applied to these case study products to provide a relative comparison of product complexity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue End of Life Products and Processes in the Emerging Circular Economy)
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25 pages, 7788 KiB  
Article
Environmental Impacts and Benefits of the End-of-Life of Building Materials: Database to Support Decision Making and Contribute to Circularity
by Ana Antunes, Ricardo Martins, José Dinis Silvestre, Ricardo do Carmo, Hugo Costa, Eduardo Júlio and Pedro Pedroso
Sustainability 2021, 13(22), 12659; https://doi.org/10.3390/su132212659 - 16 Nov 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2585
Abstract
This paper outlines a methodology for structuring a generic database of environmental impacts on the end-of-life phase of buildings, which can be used at the national level, in accordance with European standards. A number of different options are also considered for managing construction [...] Read more.
This paper outlines a methodology for structuring a generic database of environmental impacts on the end-of-life phase of buildings, which can be used at the national level, in accordance with European standards. A number of different options are also considered for managing construction and demolition waste (CDW), as well as for promoting the circularity of materials in construction. The database structure has been developed for use by the main stakeholders who decide the disposal scenario for the main CDW flows, assess waste management plans, and identify the corresponding environmental aspects. The impact categories considered in this paper are global warming potential (GWP) and the abiotic depletion potential of fossil fuels (ADP (f.f.)). This lifecycle assessment (LCA) database further facilitates the identification of important information, such as possible treatments for CDW, or suppliers of recycled materials for use in new construction. Two demolition case studies were used to confirm the benefits of the proposed database. Two demolition scenarios are assessed—traditional and selective—in order to demonstrate the advantage of selective demolition in waste management. The results obtained from the environmental assessment of CDW flows demonstrate that the proposed database can be an important and useful tool for decision making about the end-of-life of construction materials, as it is designed to maximize their reuse and recycling. An innovative online platform can be created based on this database, contributing to the reduction of the environmental impacts associated with the end-of-life phase of buildings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue End of Life Products and Processes in the Emerging Circular Economy)
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21 pages, 30331 KiB  
Article
Machine Tool Transition from Industry 3.0 to 4.0: A Comparison between Old Machine Retrofitting and the Purchase of New Machines from a Triple Bottom Line Perspective
by Serena Ilari, Fabio Di Carlo, Filippo Emanuele Ciarapica and Maurizio Bevilacqua
Sustainability 2021, 13(18), 10441; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su131810441 - 18 Sep 2021
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3148
Abstract
The emerging scenario designed by digital technologies connected to Industry 4.0 is pushing towards increasingly sustainable companies. Access to the multiple benefits of digitalization (such as increased productivity, flexibility, efficiency, quality, lower consumption of resources, and the improvement of worker safety) is possible [...] Read more.
The emerging scenario designed by digital technologies connected to Industry 4.0 is pushing towards increasingly sustainable companies. Access to the multiple benefits of digitalization (such as increased productivity, flexibility, efficiency, quality, lower consumption of resources, and the improvement of worker safety) is possible by purchasing new-generation machinery. However, thanks to smart retrofitting processes, companies can extend the shelf life of machinery without replacing it entirely. This work aims to present a framework to assess the sustainability of implementing a smart retrofitting process in old machines as an alternative to replacement from a triple bottom line (economic, environmental, and social) perspective. Due to the multidimensional and multidisciplinary variables that the proposed framework must consider, a multicriteria decision-making process is developed to identify the best transition solution from Industry 3.0 to 4.0. Then, we analyze a case study in which, thanks to the previously proposed methodology, two types of smart retrofitting on a column drill are compared with three replacement options for the same machine tool. In conclusion, the case study shows that retrofitting in the context of Industry 4.0 (or smart retrofitting), despite its high acquisition cost, is the best solution in terms of sustainability, and that this is because the smart retrofitting solution not only positively influences all parameters of digitization but also has a strong impact on the safety criterion. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue End of Life Products and Processes in the Emerging Circular Economy)
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11 pages, 254 KiB  
Article
Are Bottle Banks Sufficiently Effective for Increasing Glass Recycling Rates?
by Elbert Dijkgraaf and Raymond Gradus
Sustainability 2021, 13(17), 9540; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13179540 - 25 Aug 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2189
Abstract
The Netherlands is a frontrunner in the EU regarding the circular economy. On a national scale, there are higher targets than the EU for different packaging materials as plastics, glass, paper/cartons, and aluminium. For glass, the government advocates a recycling rate of more [...] Read more.
The Netherlands is a frontrunner in the EU regarding the circular economy. On a national scale, there are higher targets than the EU for different packaging materials as plastics, glass, paper/cartons, and aluminium. For glass, the government advocates a recycling rate of more than 90%. In 2017, the rate realised was 86%. To reach this 4% higher goal, the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate wants to improve the collection infrastructure by increasing the number of bottle banks, with 800 by 2021. However, in the literature, an effectiveness analysis is lacking. Based on empirical evidence with data from 2007–2019, we show that increasing the number of bottle banks is not effective. Implementing a unit-based pricing system as a priced bag or container for unsorted waste can be more effective in achieving this goal, although this can have serious drawbacks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue End of Life Products and Processes in the Emerging Circular Economy)

Review

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22 pages, 2535 KiB  
Review
Available Pathways for Operationalizing Circular Economy into the Olive Oil Supply Chain: Mapping Evidence from a Scoping Literature Review
by Sarah Stempfle, Domenico Carlucci, Bernardo Corrado de Gennaro, Luigi Roselli and Giacomo Giannoccaro
Sustainability 2021, 13(17), 9789; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13179789 - 31 Aug 2021
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 4087
Abstract
Circular economy (CE) is increasingly seen as a promising paradigm for transitioning agri-food systems towards more sustainable models of production and consumption, enabling virtuous and regenerative biological metabolisms based on strategies of eco-efficiency and eco-effectiveness. This contribution seeks to provide a theoretical and [...] Read more.
Circular economy (CE) is increasingly seen as a promising paradigm for transitioning agri-food systems towards more sustainable models of production and consumption, enabling virtuous and regenerative biological metabolisms based on strategies of eco-efficiency and eco-effectiveness. This contribution seeks to provide a theoretical and empirical framework for operationalizing the CE principles into the olive oil supply chain, that plays a central role in the agroecological systems of the Mediterranean region. A scoping literature review has been conducted in order to identify the available pathways so far explored by scholars for reshaping the olive oil supply chain from a circular perspective. The analyzed literature has been charted on the base of the circular pathway examined, and according to the supply chain subsystem(s) to which it refers. Results are discussed highlighting the main issues, the technology readiness level of the available pathways, the prevailing approaches and knowledge gaps. A synthetic evidence map is provided, framing visually the scrutinized pathways into the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s CE ‘butterfly’ graph. The work is intended to be a valuable baseline for inquiring how circularity can be advanced in the specific supply chain of olive oil, and which are the strategic opportunities, as well as the barriers to overcome, in order to foster the transition. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue End of Life Products and Processes in the Emerging Circular Economy)
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