Energy recovery from end-of-life vehicle recycling in Cameroon: A system dynamics approach

Abstract

From waste to resource, the benefits of recycling of end-of-life vehicles (ELVs)for the recovery of resources are widely known. The growth in the automotive industry over time has been coupled with the consumption of larger quantities of primary resources and the generation of more wastes. ELVs are increasingly being treated not only as wastes, but as an opportunity for resource recovery, with great potential to provide industry with valuable secondary raw materials. Another benefit of the recycling of ELVs is that environmental pollution caused by untreated ELVs is reduced. In this study, we estimate the amount of energy which could potentially be recovered from the recycling of ELVs in Cameroon, to meet its goal of emergence by addressing the rising energy crisis in the country, and to reduce the environmental pollution caused by ELVs. The road transportation system is considered an important element in the recycling flow of ELVs. The System Dynamics modeling is used to estimate the amount of energy recovered from ELVs considering the conditions of the road transportation network. The results indicate that the recycling of ELVs has the potential to provide a potential source of energy to boost economic activity in the country. Likewise, an increase in the paved road length would promote the recycling of ELVs and increase the potential for energy recovery. However, increasing the target total road length can be expected to have a lower impact. Our results show that the recycling of ELVs allows a substantial amount of energy to be recovered and the state of the road transportation network plays a vital role in the recycling of ELVs.