Sustainability Study of a New Solid-State Aluminum Chips Recycling Process: A Life Cycle Assessment Approach

Abstract

Nowadays, reducing greenhouse gas emissions in all human activities has become crucial. This article presents a life cycle assessment (LCA) investigation conducted to evaluate the environmental benefits of a newly developed solid-state recycling process for aluminum chips, involving two steps: direct rolling and accumulative roll bonding. A comparison was made between this process and two current industrial methods of recycling aluminum scraps to obtain wrought products, which involve melting, casting, and subsequent rolling. The LCA analysis considered a scenario where 50% of the total electric requirement was met by photovoltaic energy. The results of the study indicate that in all examined impact categories, direct rolling has a lower environmental footprint compared to both traditional recycling and twin-roll cast technology. These results suggest that this new solid-state recycling procedure has significant potential to replace environmentally harmful melting processes.