International Meeting Raw Materials & Recycling
The environmental and economical sustainability of the metallurgical industry depends on the possibility to recover and recycle the metal products after their use. On the other hand, a new challenge is a zero-waste metallurgical process. Such an approach has to be faced from perspective involving commercial, economic and technical issues. Although recycling is an intrinsic feature of all the metallurgical processes, an efficient circular approach needs to take into account a correct selection and cleaning of the metallic and glassy-ceramic materials in order to allow their use in the process avoiding or limiting the exploitation and the consumption of the natural resources.
Such a view imposes a multidisciplinary approach where the application of complex mechanical system, innovative chemical plants, electromagnetic devices, biotechnological techniques and managing algorithm even ruled by artificial intelligence (i.e. for scrap selection, removal of the organic burden, extraction of valuable chemical elements etc.) have to be applied.
An efficient action inspired to the circular economy has to take into account a comprehensive vision where the recycling is associated to an efficient material and energy exploitation that implies an overall decrease of the polluting elements and greenhouse gases.