Latest Trends and New Challenges in End-of-life Vehicle Recycling

Rapid urbanization combined with increases in per capita income have led to the world's motorization. Car manufacturers have been increasing their outputs in response to demands for fuel-efficient cars. New-generation vehicles (NGVs) like hybrid and electronic vehicles have emerged with significantly reduced weights and robust computerized systems. Likewise, the use of efficient batteries like nickel–hydrogen or lithium-ion batteries has been integrated into NGVs. Expectedly, a large volume of these cars will be classified as end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) in the near future. The European Union, Japan and Korea have developed ELV recycling systems based on the extended producer responsibility principle, designed to recover used car parts, scrap metal, batteries, etc. However, countries like Mongolia and the Philippines are inundated with imported used cars, including used NGVs, which damage the environment due to their poor emissions and hazardous waste components. Air pollution and lead soil contamination are some of the environmental problems associated with the proliferation of ELVs. This paper tackles the opportunities and challenges of ELV recycling as espoused by the European Union, Japan and Korea and its potential application in developing countries. It also discusses emerging trends in the effective utilization of waste batteries from NGVs.