Waste from Dismantling of End-of-Life Vehicles

At the end of lives (EoL), the billions of cars produced each year end up in landfill or carelessly dismantled - putting both peoples´ lives at risk and polluting the environment through uncontrolled dismantling. The UE 2000/53/EC directive imposes a recovery rate, at the end-of-life of vehicles, of 95% of their weight, and a recycling rate of 85%. In recent years, there has been a major change in the materials used in the manufacturing of motor vehicles, by largely replacing ferrous metals with plastic and composite materials in order to reduce vehicle weight and CO2 emissions. Thus, this paper identifies some of the new concepts, methods, technologies, and environmental solutions proposed for the dismantling and recycling of end-of-life vehicle (ELV) waste, starting from its collection, sorting, transport, treatment, disposal, and until its recovery and recycling. Promoting these concepts helps to develop environmental awareness in order to understand the need to reduce waste, to plan the design and production of equipment that can ensure 90% recovery and recycling, and to broaden the vision of the possibility of implementing modern waste “reduction” schemes that can be applicable to the automotive industry in a city/geographical area or country.