Towards bridging the materials loop how producers and recyclers can work together

Transcription

1 Towards bridging the materials loop how producers and recyclers can work together Christian Hagelüken Umicore EU-US Workshop on Mineral Raw Materials Flows & Data Sept. 13th, 2012, Brussels

2 Booming product sales & increasing functionality boost demand for (technology) metals Million units Annual global sales of mobile phones Source: after Gartner statistics ( Accumulated global mobile phone sales until 2010 ~ 10 billion units containing in total 2500 t Ag, 240 t Au, 90 t Pd, 38,000 t Co, 90,000 t Cu, forecast Smart Phones Drivers: growing population (Asia!) growing wealth technology development & product performance Source: Achzet et al., Materials critical to the energy industry, Augsburg,

3 Much more technology metals mined in the last 3 decades than in the entire history of mankind 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Mine production since 1980 / since 1900 % mined % mined in % mined in Re Ga In Ru Pd Rh Ir REE Si Pt Ta Li Se Ni Co Ge Cu Bi Ag Au REE = Rare Earth Elements Many of these still sitting in our products and infrastructure huge anthropogenic ore deposit for current & future exploitation 3

4 Autocatalysts an above ground PGM-stock to be mined with a years delay Σ PGM/ t a -1 Σ : Input Recycling Rh 420 t - 64 t Pd 2200 t t Pt 1900 t t Σ 4530 t t Σ PGM/ t a -1 Σ : Input Recycling Rh 97 t - 20 t Pd 600 t - 62 t Pt 710 t - 70 t Σ 1410 t -152 t global Europe Rh Pd Pt Rh Pd Pt Gross demand for autocatalysts We recycle today mainly catalysts from the end 1990 ies In spite of long lifetime we re now entering the years of a significant potential in secondary resources what needs to be done to really secure these resources? Global cumulated demand 4630 t out of ~ t ever mined recycled so far 730 t still on the road 3000 t losses 900 t! (~2 annual PGM production) 4

5 From waste to secondary resources Composition of mobile phones mobile phone substance (source Nokia) Modern electronics, cars etc. contain significant amounts of metals, among those many technology/critical metals Over 40% of world mine production of copper, tin, antimony, indium, ruthenium & rare earths are annually used in electrics & electronics (value > 50 bn. /a) 1,8 Mn. Mobile phones & 365 Mn. computer 2011 (worldwide) account for 4% world mine production of gold and silver and for 20% of palladium & cobalt. However, metal value in one mobile phone ~ 1. Cars: > 60% of PGM mine production (autocatalyst); increasing significance for electronics ( computer on wheels ) Our products & infrastructure form a huge anthropogenic deposit ( urban mine ) Technology metals increasingly are also contained in industrial residues from manufacturing, recycling, incineration etc. (production scrap, dusts, slimes, slags, fluff, ) 5

6 Consensus on benefits of a circular economy mining & recycling are complimentary to secure metal supply for infrastructure & products Residues Dissipation Use product reuse Residues Metal applications may change; Unique metal properties will not. PGM from autocat might be needed in future for fuel cells, Co from batteries for superalloys, Product manufacture New scrap End-of-Life Metals, alloys & compounds from industrial materials Recycling Residues Reduce metal losses and boost recycling along all steps of the lifecycle Securing access to scarce resources Reducing impact on energy/climate, biosphere & water resources Inducing innovation & creating jobs Raw materials production Residues from Concentrates & ores Natural resources Historic wastes (tailings, landfills) 6

7 Urban mining deposits can be much richer than primary mining ores Primary mining ~ 5 g/t Au in ore Similar for PGMs Low grade, high volume, fixed location Urban mining 200 g/t Au, 80 g/t Pd & Cu, Sn, Sb, in PC motherboards 300 g/t Au, 100 g/t Pd in cell phones 2,000 g/t PGM in automotive catalysts High grade, millions of units, global dissemination factor 40 & more Challenge 1: how to accumulate millions of discarded EoL product into urban mines of a reasonable (= economically viable) size 7

8 Recycling needs a chain, not a single process - system approach is crucial Example recycling of WEEE Recovery of technology metals from circuit boards Number of actors in Europe 1000 s 100 s Smelting & refining of technology metals (metallurgy) Collection 10,000 s Dismantling Preprocessing 3 products components/ fractions metals Investment needs Total efficiency is determined by weakest step in the chain Make sure that critical fractions reach these plants Example: 30% x 90% x 60% x 95% = 15% 8

9 Recycling technical fundamentals Success factors are product design & technical-organisational set-up of the recycling chain source: Markus Reuter, Outotec & Antoinette Van Schaik, MARAS (2010) Product manufacturing manual/mechanical preprocessing metallurgical recovery Challenge 2: How to recover low concentrated technology metals from complex products (irregular polymetallic ores with organic residues) 9

10 Technology metals need smart recycling - traditional mass focussed recycling does not fit (not for cars either) Bottle glass Steel scrap Circuit boards Autocatalysts + Green glass White glass Brown glass PM & specialty metals PGMs Mono-substance materials without hazards Trace elements remain part of alloys/glass Recycling focus on mass & costs Poly-substance materials, incl. hazardous elements Complex components as part of complex products Focus on trace elements & value 10

11 The mechanical pre-processing challenge - materials separation for final metallurgical recovery EoL product Preprocessing How to avoid dissipation of critical/ technology metals? Gold losses of 75% if PCmotherboards are not removed prior to shredding 100% gold losses in a car shredder End-processing Ferecovery Alrecovery Curecovery PMrecovery plasticsrecycling Disposal of hazardous materials Rare Earth recycling from magnets Co-Li recycling from rechargeable batteries Indium from LCD screens universal integrated smelter processes for Cu, PM & some special metals Precious + special metals Slags & other residues Dedicated processes for certain components & special metals 11

12 Multi-metal recycling with modern technology High tech & economies of scale thermodynamic limits exist Collection Preprocessing Dismantling Materials recovery Umicore s integrated smelter-refinery in Hoboken/Antwerp Treatment of t/a ISO & 9001, OHSAS Recovery of 20 metals from WEEE, catalysts, batteries, smelter by-products etc. Au, Ag, Pt, Pd, Rh, Ru, Ir, Cu, Pb, Ni, Sn, Bi, Se, Te, Sb, As, In (from universal process). Co, REE, (Li); Ga (from specialised processes) Value of precious metals enables co-recovery of specialty metals ( paying metals ) High energy efficiency by smart mix of materials and sophisticated technology High metal yields, minimal emissions & final waste

13 Metal recycling from complex products - technical* & non-technical** challenges to overcome *Accessibility of relevant components/materials - Electronics in cars, REE magnets in electric motors, Design for Disassembly, mechanical processing, Pre-shredder -technology *Thermodynamic limits & difficult substance combinations for trace elements - Rare Earths, Gallium/Germanium, Lithium, Tantalum, Design for Recycling, fundamental metallurgical research, pilot plants **Severe deficits in closing the loop for consumer goods - Electronics, cars, batteries, lamps, better collection, tracing & tracking of material flows, prevention of dubious exports, creating transparency, economic incentives, From: Disney/Pixar Complex products require a systemic solution & interdisciplinary approaches (Product design, mechanical processing, metallurgy, economics, ecology, social sciences) 13

14 Deficits in closing the loop for consumer goods - relevant materials don t reach best suited processes Collect more & better Collection Dismantling & pre-processing Smelting & refining Legislative support & ambitious targets Awareness & infrastructure New business models (leasing, deposit systems ) Better data (inventory of the urban mine) Number and type of collection categories, interplay logistics recycling technology Feed into & keep within appropriate recycling channels Collection Dismantling & pre-processing Smelting & refining Measure & monitor global product/material flows down to final process Smart tracking & tracing technology to prevent illegal exports More transparency & combined stakeholder responsibility along chain Process certification to ensure use of high quality processes More focus on critical/technology metals than on mass only 14

15 Example palladium huge differences between industrial & consumer applications Closed loop, benefits of an industrial business model & built-in transparency Open loop high & avoidable losses source: UNEP Resource Panel, press conference presentation, New York City, May 13,

16 Need for innovative business models to recycle products with high relevance for critical metals multi step manufacturing chain, direct impact on tier 1only Product manufacture New scrap Use End-of-Life multi step recycling chain, EoL takeover at 1st step Metals, alloys & compounds from industrial materials Recycling Raw materials production Residues Producer responsibility, ethical sourcing No conflict metals Ecological footprint Social standards from concentrates, ores Natural resources Producer responsibility green recycling Avoid hazardous emissions High recycling rates Social standards Approach: closed loop use of metals from EoL products for new ones 16

17 Vision: creating closed loops by service subcontracting along the recycling chain Subcontracting recycling services OEM WEEE collection preprocessing dismantling Illegal/dubious exports & inappropriate treatment Taking back important metals for reuse in own products although (indirectly) paying the bill no participation in benefits; image risk for OEM Boosting collection by innovative business models Subcontracting the single recycling steps, but keeping property of (selected) materials (e.g. circuit boards, batteries, magnets) using such (selected) recovered components/metals as strategic raw materials supply. Guaranteed transparency along the entire chain. Accountable recycling of metals with provable CO 2 reduction effect. No doubt about green origin (ethical sourcing) Toll treatment as basis for entire recycling chain instead of contracting e-waste management. metals recovery Recycled metals Status Quo OEM is losing control after collection, no transparency what is really happening Sounds like utopia? established practice in chemical industry for process catalysts 17

18 Concluding - Recycling success factors Product design & business models Consumerbehaviour Costs & revenues Collection & logistics Mechanical processing Metallurgy Product perspective Material perspective Recycling prerequisites 1. Technical recyclability as basic requirement 2. Accessibility of relevant component 3. Economic viability intrinsically or externally created 4. Completeness of collection business models, legislation, infrastructure 5. Channelling & keeping within recycling chain 6. Technical-organisational setup of chain 7. Sufficient recycling capacity 18

19 How producers & recyclers can work together basic OEM approach: recycling is opportunity, not burden 1. Product development: exchange with recyclers on design ( for disassembly, for recycling) integrate tags etc. for better tracing & tracking at EoL 2. Product manufacturing collect production scrap and channel into high quality recycling chains 3. Product sales & distribution create innovative business models (jointly with retailers) to keep track of product fate along its life and incentivise its feed into a high quality recycling chain at EoL high quality recycling of obsolete products 4. Product recycling (at EoL) Strive for comprehensive collection; avoid mixing of EoL products that don t fit Insist on transparency along entire recycling chain; certification; smart tracing & tracking Select quality partners ; less focus on mass & costs but more on critical metals & performance Keep property of key components & metals, subcontract services, reuse metals over & over again 5. General Support to improve data basis: composition, stocks & flows of products 19

20 How EU & US can work together in recycling 1. Better understand and monitor product & material flows from EoL: improved statistics & data crunching; better custom codes (distinguish new used products) aligned port controls, inspections, investigative intelligence to break up the wanted non-transparency of waste/scrap trading serious attempts to prevent dubious/illegal waste shipments 2. Set up an inventory of the urban mine data base on product sales, composition, life-time distribution dynamic modelling of future availability of secondary resources 3. Joint / aligned pre-competitive research on recycling of complex products & residues tracing & tracking technology to monitor product & material flows dismantling & mechanical pre-processing metallurgical recovery under difficult thermodynamic requirements interplay between design and recyclability 4. Create a global framework for more and better recycling Business models to close the loop setting high quality treatment standards and certification systems education & training, expert exchange, cross-disciplinary cooperation Foster research cooperation between industry and universities/rtos Build on existing competencies & initiatives (e.g. Yale stocks & flows project, UNEP Resource Panel, CR³, 20

21 Thank you! Contact: Website: Christian Hagelüken

22 Umicore a materials technology company our business approach We transform metals into hitech materials Application know-how We use application know-how to create tailor-made solutions in close collaboration with our customers We close the loop and secure supply by recycling production scrap and endof-life materials Metals Chemistry material Material science solutions Metallurgy Recycling Material solutions 14,600 people in 79 industrial sites worldwide, turnover 2.3 billion excl. metal 22

23 How we help address global megatrends Electrification of the automobile We are a leading producer of key materials for rechargeable batteries for laptops, mobile phones as well as electrified vehicles More stringent emission control We provide catalysts for 1 out of 3 cars in the world as well as for trucks & non-road vehicles Renewable energy We supply key innovative materials for highefficiency solar cells and other photovoltaic applications Resource scarcity We are the largest recycler of precious metals; we are able to recycle more than 20 different metals 23

24 Group Structure Umicore - Recycling also serves to secure our RM supply employees 2.3 bn. revenues (w/o metals, 2011) 79 industrial sites worldwide 24

25 Confusion in public debate about metals? critical metals rare metals rare earths -? H He Li Be B C N O F Ne Na Mg Al Si P S Cl Ar K Ca Sc Ti V Cr Mn Fe Co Ni Cu Zn Ga Ge As Se Br Kr Rb Cs K Sr Y Zr Nb Mo Tc Ru Rh Pd Ag Cd In Sn Sb Te I Ba La-Lu La* Hf Ta W Re Ca Ac-Lr Rf Db Bh * W Re Os Ir Pt Au Hg Tl Pb Bi Po At Sg Hs Mt Ce Pr Nd Pm Sm Eu Gd Tb Dy Ho Er Tm Yb Lu Xe Rn Precious Metals (PM) Edelmetalle Semiconductors Halbleiter Rare Earth Elements (REE) Seltene Erden Technology metals EU critical metals Technology metals are used due to their often unique physical & chemical properties - in various combinations. (conductivity; melting point; density; hardness; catalytic/optical/magnetic properties, ) 25

26 In spite all efforts still far away from closing the loop for most technology metals WEEE: precious metal recycling rates below 15% End-of-Life recycling rates for metals in metallic applications Source: UNEP (2011) Recycling Rates of Metals A Status Report, A Report of the Working Group on the Global Flows to the International Resource Panel- Graedel, T.E.: Alwood, J.; Birat, J.-P.; Buchert, M.; Hagelüken, C.; Reck, B.K.; Sibley, S.F.; Sonnemann, G. 26

27 World mine production, EEE demand and % application relative to mine production for selected metals Tin Important EEE metals Silver Gold Palladium Platinum Ruthenium Copper Antimony Cobalt Bismuth Selenium Indium Ag Au Pd Pt Ru Cu Sn Sb Co Bi Se In World mine production t/a 22,200 2, ,000 7,600 2, ,470 1, % 16% 125% 29 16,200,00 261, ,000 EEE demand t/a 7, ,174, ,708 67,500 EEE demand / mine production 34% 13% 19% 72% 44% 50% 50% Values exceeding 100% exists due to recycling (of production residues). Metal prices from Metal Bulletin, Mine production from USGS (Ru from JM), sources indicated in table for EEE volumes 4% 8% Metal price $/kg $649 $ $ $ $5.069 $566 Total $8 $20 $9 $45 $20 $82 Value of EEE use billion $ $4,90 $12,90 $0,74 $0,37 $0,11 $54,08 $2,65 $0,61 $0,75 $0,02 $0,02 $0,41 $77,56 Source, data year GFMS, 2010 GFMS, 2010 JM, 2011 JM, 2011 JM, 2011 GFMS, 2010 ITRI, RESOLVE, 2010 Adroit, 2010 CDI, 2010 MCP, 2011 Naumov, STDA, 2010 Roskill, Metal Pages,

28 Potential metal scarcity? Absolute = resource depletion not in near future, but: Natural resource base degrades continuously (ore grades, mining conditions) increasing costs, energy & water demand, environmental burden Temporary = mismatch demand supply ongoing Sudden demand increase (new applications, market surges, speculative, ) Time lag & investment risk for new mines and smelters Trade barriers, political unrest, war, natural disasters, Special vulnerability in case of concentrated supply (deposits, mining companies) Structural: = supply constraints from coupled production ongoing typical for many technology metals Supply of minor metals (In, Bi, Se, Te Rh, Ru, Ir, ) depends on mining of major metals (Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb, Pt, ) 28

29 CO 2 impact of primary metal production t CO 2 / t primary metal Au Pt Pd Ru In Ag Sn Why?: e.g. PGM, South Africa < 10 g/t, > 1000m underground Co 0 Cu source: ecoinvent 2.0, EMPA/ETH-Zürich,

30 Temporary & structural scarcity Structural scarcity 2 supply constraints by coupled production ( price inelastic) Temporary scarcity price volatility e.g. LCD impact on indium prices 1 PGM Metals in use Potential substitutes Substitution 3 is often only a limited solution, since many substitutes derive from same metal family 1 Price explosion by ITO boom for LCDs ( ). Increased primary supply & recycling of production scrap drove prices down again (amplified by & economic crises) 2 Increased demand can only be met if demand for carrier metals rises accordingly places an absolute cap on availability. 3 Technically challenging, especially for high end application. Can cause bottlenecks & price surges at substitute 30

31 Decoupling of resource use from GDP growth is unlikely for technology metals EU-strategy useful & realistic for base metals, especially if used in infrastructure source: Next steps for EU waste and resource policies, R. v.d.vlies, DG Env., Brussels technical solutions to improve resource efficiency & mitigate climate impact rather need more than less precious/special metals (PV, EV, catalysis etc.) primary supply of by-product technology metals will drop in case of: Successful decoupling for base metals (Cu, Ni, Al, Pb) Improved recycling of base metals Supply restrictions for lead, nickel etc. Double need to efficiently recycle technology metals 31

32 Substitution vs Recycling Substitution: No sustainable solution if substitutes are from same metal family problem shifting Difficult for hi-tech applications based on specific material properties Can lead to supply constraints & price surges for substitute Consider impact of substitute on recyclability Not competing but complementary approaches, set the right priorities: Check if improved recycling is lower hanging fruit than substitution (e.g. PGM in autocat) Focus on substitution of dissipative applications of critical metals (e.g. Ag in RFID) Look for substitutes with abundant availability 32

33 Improving supply security by closing the loop - a crucial complimentary approach to mining From waste to secondary resources High potential especially for technology metals/critical metals Improves demand-supply balance and mitigates prices increases & volatility Urban mine deposits are available in our courtyard No need here for raw materials diplomacy or RM partnerships No need for time & cost intensive exploration & mine development Quick access principally possible, enables higher geopolitical independence Advantage metal recycling: no quality degradation/ downcycling, recycled metals have identical physical-chemical properties as primary ones and same prices No benefit of incentivising use of recycled metals in products (minimum recycled content*) once they are recycled they will be used automatically Instead: Ensure that products are collected and recycled effectively at end-of-life - incentivise collection/closed loop business models and high quality recycling! Conflict metals: if supplied from serious recyclers metals are clean by definition. Closed loops & transparency in EoL chains facilitates ethical sourcing for OEMs *Risk of greenwashing misuse: does e.g. recycled jewellery gold really make a computer greener? 33

34 Learning from industry - closed loop business models for industrial catalysts minimize losses Source: Hagelüken, Buchert, Stahl: Materials flow of platinum group metals, GFMS, London, 2005 Example: Metal flows of Pt/Pd catalysts used in oil refining Inherently efficient > 90% measured efficiency Product remains physically located at industrial plant Provider, user & refiner of PGM product work closely together User typically retains PGM ownership secure supply, no price risk transparent material flows & professional governance Close open consumer products loops via innovative business models Leasing for longer living products generates transparency & link between producer & customer Deposit systems (e.g. for mobile phones) trigger handing back of old devices Room for other creative approaches 34

35 Research requirements I Mechanical processing & metallurgy Recycling of (critical) production residues Design for Disassembly / Design for Recycling Substitution with abundant substances, interplay substitution recycling Mechanical processing of complex products w/o dissipation of technology metals Pre-shredder technology to remove magnets, circuit boards, batteries, etc. Thermodynamics of complex (incompatible) metal mixes (pre-competitive) Optimise metal yields & energy efficiency of metallurgical processes Recycling of Rare Earth Metals, Gallium, Germanium, Tantalum, Pilot plants, scale up ( crossing the valley of death ) Interface optimisation mechanical processing metallurgy Recycling of slags, flue dust, ashes, landfills, tailings, Metal recycling from functional surfaces (LCDs; PV, ) Analyse impacts on overall system & system interdependencies. Cooperation industry research practical relevance, education, scale up Priority setting go for fundamental (not incremental) improvements 35

36 Research requirements II Logistics & socio-economy Interface Logistics mechanical processing: collection categories, pre-sorting Number of collection categories (separate vs. joint) ; appropriate pre-sorting intensity Optimal infrastructure for relevant small devices (mobile phones, USB-sticks, batteries ) Technical means for tracking & tracing of material flows / transparency creation RFID chips etc. (but: avoid metal dissipation (Ag!)) Automated documentation along the chain (e.g. mass balances, distribution of flows) Automated port controls, scanning of containers for illegal loads Design for Detection : Tagging of relevant products / components (e.g. mobile phones, circuit boards, batteries) with clear information for automated sorting (before/after mechanical processing) with reasonable added information (manufacturer, important substances contained,..) Data bank for product sales, stocks & EoL arisings, inventory & forecasts on metal content in products (systematic quantification of the urban mine ) New business models to close the loop (leasing, deposit systems, ) Suitable economic incentives for recycling of critical metals; intermediate storage Consumer behaviour, psychological recycling triggers Interplay with product design and technical requirements 36