Evaluation of recycling efforts of aircraft companies in Wichita

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Authors
Asmatulu, Eylem
Twomey, Janet M.
Overcash, Michael
Advisors
Issue Date
2013-11
Type
Article
Keywords
Aircraft , Recycling , Reuse , Environmental and economic benefits , Virgin materials , Natural resource usage
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Citation
Asmatulu, Eylem; Twomey, Janet M.; Overcash, Michael. 2013. Evaluation of recycling efforts of aircraft companies in Wichita. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, vol. 80, November 2013, ppg. 36–45
Abstract

The number of manufactured aircraft has been continuously increasing worldwide because of the high demand for airline transportation. During manufacturing, many advanced materials and devices are used to build various sizes and shapes of aircraft. However, most of these materials and devices require considerable energy and labor to produce, so reusing these at any life stage of the aircraft offers many economic and environmental benefits, and is considered lucrative and environmentally responsible. Several recyclable materials—composites, metals and alloys, wires, wood, paper, plastics, electronics, and avionics—emerge as waste streams during the manufacturing of aircraft. Many aircraft companies have been recycling these materials to remanufacture aircraft parts or other products for more sustainable production. In the present study, we evaluated the recycling efforts of local aircraft companies in Wichita, KS. These efforts were considered in terms of recycling efficiency/rate and environmental benefits. These included cradle-to-gate (CTG) life-cycle inventory analysis of the materials, carbon dioxide emissions, virgin material replacement with recycled materials, and natural resources usage. Our findings show that there exists a significant potential for contributions to sustainability as well as environmental and health benefits in the region from recycling by aircraft manufacturing plants.

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Publisher
Elsevier Science BV
Journal
Book Title
Series
Resources, Conservation and Recycling;v.80
PubMed ID
DOI
ISSN
0921-3449
EISSN