Methodology for recycling potential evaluation criterion of waste home appliances considering environmental and economic factor

Abstract

An evaluation method to assess recycling potential, considering both the environmental and economic aspects, was suggested for the material recovered from waste home appliances. The life cycle assessment (LCA) method was applied to obtain the environmental score (S/sub Env/), and the actual value and a static economic model was used to obtain the economic score (S/sub Eco/). The S/sub Env/ of recycled glass and circuit board showed the highest value (11.97), followed by copper (9.37), iron (6.77), and plastic (3.67). The S/sub Eco/ of recycled copper showed the highest value (6.97), followed by aluminum (5.23), iron (5.15), plastic (4.82), and glass and circuit board (3.50). The recycling potentials for the recyclable materials were calculated by weighting S/sub Env/ and S/sub Eco/ with the factors obtained from the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) method. As a result, the recycling potential of copper was the highest, followed by iron, glass, circuit board, and aluminum. This calculated data and methodology would provide a useful data for decision makers and product designers in design for environment (DfE).