Urban Mines of Copper: Size and Potential for Recycling in the EU
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Methods
2.1. The Anthropogenic Lifecycle of Cu
2.2. The European Cu Model
3. Results
3.1. The Contemporary Cu Cycle
3.2. Historic Evolution of Trade Flows of Cu
3.3. Accumulation of Cu in Regional Above-Ground Reserves
3.4. Cu Recycling Indicators
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Supplementary Materials
Acknowledgments
Author Contributions
Conflicts of Interest
Abbreviations
C&D | Construction and demolition waste |
Cu | Copper |
EC | European Commission |
ELV | End-of-life vehicle |
EOL-RR | End-of-life recycling rate |
EU-28 | European Union (28 Member States) |
Gg | Gigagram (1 Gg = 1 × 109 grams (g) = 1 kilo metric tonnes (kt)) |
IUD | In-use dissipation |
IUS | In-use stock |
IW | Electrical and non-electrical industrial waste |
kg | Kilogram (1 kg = 1 × 103 grams (g)) |
MSW | Municipal solid waste |
NAS | Net-addition to in-use stock |
NIR | Net-Import Reliance |
Tg | Teragram (1 Tg = 1 × 1012 grams (g) = 1 million metric tonnes (Mt)) |
TS | Temporary stock |
UN COMTRADE | United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database |
WEEE | Waste electrical and electronic equipment |
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End-Use Sector | Example of Application Included |
---|---|
Building and construction | Building wire; plumbing and heating; air conditioning and commercial refrigerator; builders hardware; architectural |
Electrical and electronic products | Power utilities; telecommunications; business electronics; lighting and wiring devices |
Industrial machinery and equipment | In-plant equipment, industrial valves and fittings, non-electrical instruments, off-road vehicles, heat exchangers |
Transportation equipment | Automobile; truck and bus; railroad; marine, aircraft and aerospace |
Consumer and general goods | Appliances, cord sets, military and commercial ordnance, consumer electronics, fasteners and closures, coinage, utensils and cutlery, miscellaneous |
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Ciacci, L.; Vassura, I.; Passarini, F. Urban Mines of Copper: Size and Potential for Recycling in the EU. Resources 2017, 6, 6. https://doi.org/10.3390/resources6010006
Ciacci L, Vassura I, Passarini F. Urban Mines of Copper: Size and Potential for Recycling in the EU. Resources. 2017; 6(1):6. https://doi.org/10.3390/resources6010006
Chicago/Turabian StyleCiacci, Luca, Ivano Vassura, and Fabrizio Passarini. 2017. "Urban Mines of Copper: Size and Potential for Recycling in the EU" Resources 6, no. 1: 6. https://doi.org/10.3390/resources6010006