Copper is the material that will dominate the smart cities of the future. Its unique conductive properties make it an ideal solution for technological infrastructure. Consequently, its demand for such applications is expected to double by 2025. These are the conclusions of a recent study by the ICA (International Copper Alliance) and thus, it defined Urban Mining as part of the Circular Economy .
So how will we meet this increased demand for metals and raw materials? How will organizations and governments win the circular economy bet?
The Urban Mining proposal
Metals such as copper already have a high residual recycling value. Copper can be recycled over and over again without losing its properties. Around 50% of the copper used in Europe is already recycled. This means that copper has a significant contribution to make to achieving a circular economy.
An urban mine is defined as the metal stockpile in discarded waste. A typical example is car catalytic converters, which contain precious metals such as platinum, palladium and rhodium.
Urban mining is the process of recovering these scarce raw materials through mechanical and chemical processing. In practice, this is achieved by recycling objects that have reached the last stage of their life cycle. Urban mining is now necessary for economies to cope with the growing demand for resources and, most importantly, for metals.
How will we unlock the prospect of the Circular Economy?
Businesses and organizations are being incentivized to contribute to the goal of a circular economy, resulting in continuous improvement of recycling technologies and systems. Of course, there is great room for improvement.
A recent report by the Fraunhofer Institute shows that Urban Mining makes a significant contribution to achieving sustainable development. Conventional mining secures raw materials by recovering and refining natural resources from the ground. Urban Mining does the same from the stock of goods that have been exploited by society.
In 2018 alone, 24 million tons of copper from the Urban Mining process was turned into new products.
Where do we find these materials?
Most of the goods we use every day contain materials that we can promote for recycling. An old car, an old electrical appliance, a used machine and more.
Urban mining is an integral part of the Circular Economy. It unlocks the resources we have already used and continuously returns them to the market stream in the form of new goods.
If recycling and the circular economy interest you, subscribe to our Newsletter to stay constantly informed about new developments.
Source: here
