Models for recycling electronics end-of-life products
Document Type
Article
Date of Original Version
1-1-2001
Abstract
Increasing environmental concerns about the disposal of mass produced products have resulted in efforts to take back end-of-life consumer products. Legislation aimed at forcing manufacturers to take back electronics products at the end of their useful lives has either been adopted or is impending in many countries. This, along with shrinking landfill capacity and the reluctance of communities to open new waste sinks underscores the importance of developing methods and models for the management of end-of-life materials and products. This paper reports a study of the reverse channels for recycling of electronics products. The economics of electronics recycling are modeled from the viewpoints of the generators, recyclers, and material processors separately. A variety of mathematical programming models, representative of the many ways in which the recycling industry currently operates, have been proposed along with numerical illustrations. Models integrating disassembly and material recovery decisions are also presented. These models can be used by recyclers and processors for optimizing recycling operations and thus contribute towards the economic sustainability of electronics recycling.
Publication Title, e.g., Journal
OR Spektrum
Volume
23
Issue
1
Citation/Publisher Attribution
Sodhi, Manbir S., and Bryan Reimer. "Models for recycling electronics end-of-life products." OR Spektrum 23, 1 (2001): 97-115. doi: 10.1007/PL00013347.