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. 2019 Oct 1;11(10):1604.
doi: 10.3390/polym11101604.

Critical Factors for the Recycling of Different End-of-Life Materials: Wood Wastes, Automotive Shredded Residues, and Dismantled Wind Turbine Blades

Rachele Castaldo  1 , Francesca De Falco  2 , Roberto Avolio  3 , Emilie Bossanne  4 , Felipe Cicaroni Fernandes  5 , Mariacristina Cocca  6 , Emilia Di Pace  7 , Maria Emanuela Errico  8 , Gennaro Gentile  9 , Dominik Jasiński  10 , Daniele Spinelli  11 , Sonia Albein Urios  12 , Markku Vilkki  13 , Maurizio Avella  14
Affiliations

Critical Factors for the Recycling of Different End-of-Life Materials: Wood Wastes, Automotive Shredded Residues, and Dismantled Wind Turbine Blades

Rachele Castaldo et al. Polymers (Basel). .

Abstract

Different classes of wastes, namely wooden wastes, plastic fractions from automotive shredded residues, and glass fiber reinforced composite wastes obtained from dismantled wind turbines blades were analyzed in view of their possible recycling. Wooden wastes included municipal bulky wastes, construction and demolition wastes, and furniture wastes. The applied characterization protocol, based on Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy in attenuated total reflection (ATR) mode, scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDX), and thermogravimetric analysis (TG) coupled with FTIR spectrometry for the investigation of the evolved gases, revealed that the selected classes of wastes are very complex and heterogeneous materials, containing different impurities that can represent serious obstacles toward their reuse/recycling. Critical parameters were analyzed and discussed, and recommendations were reported for a safe and sustainable recycling of these classes of materials.

Keywords: FTIR; characterization; end-of-life vehicles; evolved gas analysis; municipal bulky waste; recycling.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Attenuated total reflectance (ATR)-FTIR spectra of MBW samples.
Figure 2
Figure 2
SEM images of the samples MBW-P1 (a,b) MBW-P4 (c,d) and MBW (e,f).
Figure 3
Figure 3
TG curve of the sample MBW in the temperature range 100–750 °C (a). FTIR spectrum of the evolved gases from the sample MBW at 260 °C during TG experiment (b).
Figure 4
Figure 4
FTIR spectrum (a) and SEM images (b–d) of the CDW sample. TG curve of the sample CDW in the temperature range 100–750 °C (e). FTIR spectrum of the evolved gases from the sample CDW at 260 °C during TG experiment (f).
Figure 5
Figure 5
FTIR spectra of FW particles (a); SEM images (b–d) of the FW sample. TG curve of the sample FW in the temperature range 100–750 °C (e). Gram-Schmidt profile (f) and FTIR spectrum (g) of the evolved gases from the sample FW at 260 °C during TG experiment.
Figure 6
Figure 6
SEM images (a,b) and SEM/EDX results (c,d,e) of untreated ELV samples. ATR-FTIR of randomly selected ELV particles (f).
Figure 7
Figure 7
ATR-FTIR spectra of: (a) Homogeinized LF-ELV and HF-ELV samples; (b) extracts in chloroform from LF-ELV and HF-ELV samples and di-isononylphthalate reported for comparison.
Figure 8
Figure 8
TG curves of the samples LF-ELV (a) and HF-ELV (b) in the temperature range 100–750 °C. FTIR spectra of evolved gases from LF-ELV and HF-ELV samples at 200 °C under air flow. The gas spectra of an alkylphthalate plasticizer and hydrochloric acid are reported for comparison (c).
Figure 9
Figure 9
ATR-FTIR spectrum of wind turbine blade (WTB) waste (a). SEM images of WTB waste (b, c, d). TG curves of the WTB sample in the temperature range 100–750 °C (e). FTIR spectra of evolved gases from WTB waste at 280 °C under air flow (f).
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