The words ‘Circular Economy’ can cover a lot of different subjects, but within CRM Group this is oriented towards maximising the value of metals produced and retaining that value during the life cycle as long as possible. To retain that value a shift is required to more circular materials and products. So circularity starts at the efficient use and lean production of materials and linked to that the eco-design of the application. Once a material reaches its end of life it should be re-used, re-manufactured or recycled in the most valorising way.

Within that frame CRM Group has developed a process ready for industrialisation to recycle secondary aluminium from domestic waste, even with high organic content from food, coating or packaging. A process that drastically reduces energy consumption for the production of raw Al metal in comparison to the primary production process from bauxite. The process valorises both the aluminium waste metal as the energetic content of the waste stream. In fact the energetic and economic balance is such that the process becomes truly viable as a stand-alone option considering sufficiently large input flow can be guaranteed. A question of centralising the incoming flow. The output material is used for current other industrial processes and should be explored more in detail.

To optimise even further it would help to know exactly what is inside the waste stream and several measurement techniques have allowed to screen the materials and make ideal recipes to feed into the new process. Digitalisation is at the service of closing the materials loop, since recycling of waste to metal is only the final step in closing the loop of efficiently sourced, produced, traced and reused materials.

Thermal preconditioning treatment and vacuum distillation
Four aluminium 🎬

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