Recycling of Aircraft: State of the Art in 2011
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Hindawi Publishing Corporation Journal of Industrial Engineering Volume 2013, Article ID 960581, 8 pages http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/960581 Research Article Recycling of Aircraft: State of the Art in 2011 Eylem Asmatulu, Michael Overcash, and Janet Twomey Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, Wichita State University, 1845 Fairmount, Wichita, KS 67260-0133, USA Correspondence should be addressed to Michael Overcash; [email protected] Received 26 September 2012; Revised 28 November 2012; Accepted 2 December 2012 Academic Editor: Alan Chan Copyright © 2013 Eylem Asmatulu et al. is is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Recently, the end-of-service life for aging aircra and related parts has become a key subject in recycling industries worldwide. Over the next 20 years, approximately 12,000 aircra currently utilized for different purposes will be at the end of service. us, reclaiming retired aircra by environmentally responsible methods while retaining some of the value becomes a signi�cant need. Recycling aircra components and using these in different applications will reduce the consumption of natural resources as well as land�ll allocations. Compared to the production of virgin materials, recycling aircra will also reduce air, water, and soil contaminations, as well as energy demand. In the present study, we have investigated the environmental bene�ts of recycling and reusing aircra components in the same or similar applications as low-energy input materials. During the aircra recycling, most of the aircra components can be recycled and reused aer reasonable modi�cations and investments. 1. Introduction Generally, aircra are composed of a number of different materials and devices, including long and short carbon “Wastes [end-of-life material] from one industrial process can and glass �ber composites, wires, aluminum, titanium and serve as the raw materials for another, thereby reducing the steel alloys, foam, textiles and carpet, landing gears, �uids, impactofindustryontheenvironment”(FroschandGallopou- electronic devices, engines, and other parts. Sometimes the los, 1989) [1]. is statement is one of the major motivations complexity of materials and devices in aircra (e.g., military, fortheauthorstofocusonrecyclingaircraandrelated business jet, and civilian) can reduce the recyclability rate; components. Recycling aircra is a series of activities: collect- therefore, during the initial design, manufacturers should ing recyclable materials and devices from aircra that would consider the EoL of aircra. otherwise be considered waste and sorting and processing those useful materials into raw materials for future aircra and other industrial applications. Hundreds of recyclable 2. Recent Progress in Aircraft Recycling materials are available in aging aircra, and this number continually increases, based on economic and technological Currently a number of aerospace alloys, including aluminum developments in the reuse �eld. At the end of life (EoL), and magnesium-based alloys, as well as nickel, cobalt, and aircra are oen placed in aircra graveyards/parking places titanium-based alloys, have been produced and used for where these sit and degrade as the result of environmental aircra manufacturing. Aluminum alloys are mainly cop- in�uences, such as �V light, moisture, and oxygen/ozone. In per, zinc, manganese, silicon, and magnesium. e two most cases, the useful materials from aircra are high tech main classi�cations of aluminum-based alloys are cast and and should be valued for future production and materials wrought, both of which are subdivided into heat-treatable conservation. e following section will focus on aircra and nonheat-treatable categories. Approximately, 80 of recycling companies, aircra recycling methodologies, and aluminum alloys are produced by the wrought process in related references. Environmental bene�ts associated with the form of sheets and foils that are higher in strength% aircra recycling and rising market perception of regained and lower in density, which are desired by the aircra products will be reviewed. industry. Among the major aluminum alloys commonly used 2 Journal of Industrial Engineering in aircra and other aerospace applications (helicopters and efficiently. ey offer a reliable source of high-quality aer spacecra)—7075, 6061, 6063, 2024, and 5052—the 7075 market airframe spares to global customers, primarily includ- aluminum alloy is most preferred by the aircra industry. e ing avionics, electronics, engines, rotables, landing gear, composition includes 5.1 –6.1 zinc, 2.1 –2.9 magne- interior decorations, and other �ight control parts [6]. us, sium, 1.2 –2.0 copper, and less than 0.5 of silicon, iron, AFRA is the major accreditation process and provides the manganese, titanium, chromium,% % and other% trace% metals. aircra and recycling industries with all necessary procedures ese alloys% are% extensively employed in aircra% fuselages and and tools in order to maximize environmental efficiency and other engineering structures and compounds in which light economic pro�t during aircra disassembly. is increases weight and corrosion-resistant materials are highly required. the value of the recyclable aircra at EoL by developing Additionally, specially designed alloys make it possible for new technologies and approaches that utilize higher-valued the aircra industry to produce high-strength products for materials and devices from aircra and other closely related jet engines and airframes where high temperature, pressure, industries. and vibration are included during design and manufacturing. AFRA and Boeing also intend to reduce the amount of Also, stainless steel, nickel, copper, titanium, and these alloys aircra manufacturing waste transferred to the land�ll by are the major components of aircra alloys employed for 25 by 2012. AFRA is the global organization dedicated engine blocks, providing high strength and the ability to to environmentally responsible management of airplanes perform at particularly high temperatures and pressure [2]. during% the EoL service and also to the practice of continual Bombardier became the �rst original equipment manu- life-cycle improvement. According to the AFRA, the quality facturer to emphasize aircra dismantling operations and, in of recycled composite materials needs to be improved, and turn, obtained a dismantling certi�cation from the Aircra new applications and markets for inside and outside the Fleet Recycling Association (AFRA) in 2010. e company aviation sector need to be de�ned. Recycling also makes successfully dismantled a CRJ100/200 regional jet, which was excellent business sense, because the market desires are recognized by the AFRA as one of the best practices in the satis�ed at lower costs [5]. �eld. In August 2010, Bombardier Aircra Services of Char- Processing for the advanced management of EoL for lotte, North Carolina, disassembled 10 CRJ100/200 regional aircra (PAMELA) is a program for aircra dismantling jets for refurbishing and remarketing useable components for that is supported by the European Commission’s “LIFE” different aircra companies. ey recovered 1,500 reusable initiative. is dismantling project mainly focuses on sub- parts, including 300 line-replaceable units per jet [3]. jects, including management, recycling, and reduction of Carbon Fiber Remanufacturing (CFR), a company estab- land�lls. In this project, the Airbus Company dismantled a lished in 1997 in Whitewater Kansas, specializes in the recy- 24-year-old airplane (A300B4) into four categories: structure, cling of carbon �ber of composites. is company generally cockpit/cabin/cargo, systems, and power plant. e main idea recycles scrap carbon �bers obtained from the manufac- behind the project was to increase the amount and quality turing process and reuses about 30 of these in further of materials from retired aircra. Purity was not the main manufacturing processes to make new composites. CFR issue in this project, but the quantity and amount of recovered utilizes detangling, cutting, and hammer% milling processes materials (e.g., mostly nonferrous materials) were considered to remanufacture carbon �ber scraps for different product major advantages. Unlike current processes, dismantling was applications. e recycled carbon �bers are used as secondary more efficient and recovered up to 70 –80 of the scrap raw materials without any mechanical property losses, so by weight for reuse. According to Airbus, recovered scrap the remanufactured carbon �bers are nearly the same as the metals are reasonably pure, so that the recovered% % aluminium virgin carbon �bers. ese can be cut into speci�ed lengths alloys and other parts can be reused directly in the aerospace (0.6 cm–7.5 cm) and integrated into nonwoven rolled cloth industry. products and compounds for preferred speci�cations. ese In addition to economic returns, recycling has environ- can be added into �ber-reinforced plastics and polymers to mental bene�ts, as well. For example, aluminium manufac- make composites and also blended with glass and Kevlar turing is an energy-intensive process due to the electrolysis �bers in order to develop new products. Recycled carbon step (or Bayer process). However, when aluminium is directly �bers can be used in structural, insulation (thermal and recovered and reused, it reduces the initial energy by 90