Circular Economy 1 Flashcards
(18 cards)
What are the four main sectors contributing to CO2 emissions, and what are their percentages?
- Energy (73.2%)
- Agriculture, Forestry & Land-use (18.4%)
- Industry (5.2%)
- Waste (3.2%)
What percentage reduction in greenhouse gas emissions can be achieved through aluminum recycling?
Answer: 96% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions can be achieved through aluminum recycling.
What is the global stainless steel production in 2023?
Answer: 58.4 million tonnes
What are the three categories of steel scrap and their recycling rates?
- Circular Scrap (produced in steel mills) - 100% recycling rate
- New Scrap (from steel processing) - 100% recycling rate
- External Scrap (end-of-life products) - 60-80% recycling rate
Which element has the highest value share in stainless steel scrap?
Answer: Nickel has the highest value share at 70% of the total value.
What are the regional differences in external scrap quota (2015) between USA, Europe, and China?
Answer:
- USA: 59.2%
- Europe: 55.6%
- China: 12.7%
What are three key economic benefits of a circular economy?
- Creates jobs and economic value in recycling and waste management sectors
- Reduces dependence on imported raw materials
- Fosters innovative business models like peer-to-peer marketplaces and clothing rental
What are the main steps in the stainless steel production process?
- Gathering raw materials
- Melting in electric arc furnace
- Adding chromium and other elements
- Refining to remove impurities
- Shaping through hot or cold rolling
- Final heat treatment and surface finishing
What are the three main methods of hedging price change risks in the stainless steel market?
- back to back contracts → A financial arrangement where a buyer and seller agree to trade at a fixed price, with the transaction occurring simultaneously or within a very short time frame, helping to minimize price volatility risks
- can be difficult as buying and selling may diverge in terms of time, quantity and geography
- hedging with instruments of commodity futures exchange
- A company can buy or sell futures contracts that correspond to the underlying commodity (like nickel traded on the London Metal Exchange)1
- These contracts lock in prices for future delivery, protecting against price fluctuations
- If prices move unfavorably in the physical market, gains in the futures market can offset these losses, and vice versa
- products for hedging by commercial banks
- Financial products offered by banks that help companies protect against price fluctuations in commodity markets, such as options, swaps, or other derivatives that can be used to manage market risks
What are the key components of the stainless steel recycling value chain?
- Purchase (from national and international supplier networks)
- Sorting (separation, shredding, and blending)
- Sales and logistics (mostly short-term monthly contracts)
What is a circular economy?
- A model of production and consumption focused on sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing, and recycling materials and products as long as possible
- Extends product life cycles through various methods
- Often associated with waste management but represents a broader economic concept
What is steel?
a metal based off iron→ carbon content less than 2% and contains other elements
where is steel and stainless steel used?
- automotive industry, metal products, machinery
- buildings & architecture
- electric appliances and household goods
Reasons for stainless steel recycling
- recovery of iron and valuable alloying elements (e.g. nickel, molybdenum, chromium)
- reduction of energy consumption and process times → compared to producing new steel
- reduction of CO2 footprint of stainless steel scrap in partial life cycle
- attractive raw material
- easy to identify
Global end of life recycling rate of steel
95%
Regional distribution of production and market of steel
- China: 58.3%
- Europe: 11.4%
- Asia (excluding China): 13.3%
- USA: 3.6%
- Others: 13.5%
What influences pricing for stainless steel scraps?
- Pricing influenced by prices of primary raw materials:
- Iron (12% of value)
- Chromium (18% of value)
- Nickel (70% of value) → highest value share of stainless steel scrap
- also quite volatile
- is an investment product on the London Metal Exchange (LME)
How to manage price risks in stainless steel market?
Through hedging of commodity prices
