Creation of a recycling-oriented society
In Pursuit of a Recycling-Oriented Business Model
In Pursuit of a Recycling-Oriented Business Model
Purpose of activities | Activities during fscal 2021 | Self- | Targets/plans for activities from fscal |
assessment | 2022 onwards | ||
Promoting the recycling | The amount recycled was 1,850 tons/year, | B | Ensure the stable operation of recycling |
of fuorine resources | 18% below the plan | plants and achieve the plan of the amount | |
(Advanced Products | Material recycling rate was 19%, 6% below | recycled | |
(Electronic Materials & | the plan | ||
Components)) | |||
Promoting the recycling | Recycling rate increased (by 135% from | A | Recycling rate increased (by 97% from the |
of tungsten | the fscal 2018 level) | fscal 2018 level) | |
(Metalworking Solutions | Use more recycling manufacturers (than | Stabilize the amount of recycling | |
Business) | the current level ⇒ Add one manufacturer) | ||
Expanding recycling | Optimize the smelting business in response | A | Material fow optimization |
operations (Metals | to the expansion of E-Scrap processing | ||
Business) | |||
Steadily processing | Consumption of waste plastics increased | B | Increase the usage of waste plastic by |
industrial waste as raw | by 14,189 tons from the previous year | introducing high-efciency kiln burners | |
materials (Cement | Biomass and low-cost alternative thermal | Look for new biomass and low-cost | |
Business) | energy resources increased by 2,239 tons | alternative thermal energy resources and | |
from the previous year | expand acceptance of such energy | ||
Increase waste utilization through fully | |||
automated analytical equipment | |||
Advancement of Home | Technology development for automatic | A | Expand the home appliance recycling |
Appliances Recycling | sorting robot | business, promote automation of home | |
Aiming for No.1 handling | Development of technologies for | appliance recycling, and improve the | |
company of E-Scrap in | recovering cobalt and nickel from lithium | added value of collected items | |
Japan (Environment & | ion batteries | Verifcation of technologies for recycling | |
Energy Business) | Demonstrated advanced recycling of | lithium ion batteries and solar panels | |
collected items from home appliances | Stable operation of the incineration fy ash | ||
recycling by utilizing automobile recycling | recycling business and the business of | ||
facilities | producing biogas from food waste | ||
Facilitating the 3Rs as | Continued to provide internal support for | A | Provide lateral support to further improve |
part of aluminum can | Universal | the aluminum-can recovery rate of | |
operations (Aluminum | Can Corporation in line with the Japan | Universal Can Corporation | |
Business) | Aluminum Can | ||
Recycling Association's third voluntary | |||
action plan to promote the 3Rs via | |||
aluminum beverage cans | |||
Self-assessment grades A: Target achieved B: Target mostly achieved C: Target not achieved
Recycling-Oriented Business Model
Overview of our Recycling-Oriented Business Model
The Mitsubishi Materials Group is a complex corporate entity encompassing a wide range of technologies and expertise, from resources upstream to materials midstream to processed products downstream. We have continued to make the most of those capabilities on a groupwide scale, in an efort to establish a recycling-oriented business model based on recovering resources from a wide range of waste products.
We strive to create cyclical value chains in each of our businesses, so that resources and materials are processed into products and then recycled back into materials. As well as enabling sustainable growth, this also helps to promote recycling-oriented social systems(Circular Economy).
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- Recycling-orientedbusiness model of the Group
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Creation of a recycling-oriented society
Recycling-oriented value chain
Recycling in Individual Businesses
Advanced Products (Electronic Materials & Components)
- Recycling Fluorine Resources
We manufacture a range of fuorine compounds at the Group company Mitsubishi Materials Electronic Chemicals Co., Ltd., including materials for use in semiconductor manufacturing, fame retardant and antistatic materials, and hydrofuoric acid. Since fscal 2007, we have been engaged in the recycling of fuorine resources in which we recover calcium fuoride waste emitted by companies using fuorine compounds and recycle it back into fuorine resources that can be used as alternative raw materials for fuorite. We will promote the recycling of fuorine resources through further technical innovation.
Metalworking Solutions
- Recycling Tungsten from Urban Mines
Waste containing rare metals is often found in the form of "urban mines," which contain such a high percentage of rare metals that it is possible to extract them more efciently than obtaining metals from natural resources. A prime example is tungsten, the main raw material used in cemented carbide products. Making the most of the Mitsubishi Materials Group's comprehensive capabilities as a manufacturer, from raw materials through to fnished products, we are currently focusing on recycling used cemented carbide products in an efort to secure stable supplies of raw materials
Metals
■ Recycling Rare Metals
PGM* are rare metals that are found in copper concentrate. Group company | The rare metal recycling process |
Materials Eco-Refning Co., Ltd. refnes PGM intermediate materials obtained | |
from our Naoshima Smelter & Refnery, to create products such as metals | |
and chemical compounds. | |
Platinum and palladium in particular are key materials in the automotive, | |
electric and electronic sectors. With that in mind, we applied to register our | |
brand with the London Platinum and Palladium Market (LPPM), as a means | |
of ofering market assurance, and successfully obtained certifcation in | |
September 2012. We are determined to keep on improving the quality of our | |
products, and make every efort to ensure stable supplies of rare metals. | |
* Platinum Group Metals |
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■ Recycling Scrap
We use smelting technology for the purpose of recycling at our smelters and | Volume of scrap processed |
refneries. We take in a wide variety of scrap, including shredder dust and | |
used batteries from sources such as used home appliances or scrap vehicles, | |
and E-Scrap from sources such as used substrates and connectors. We then | |
recycle scrap, by using it for raw materials or thermal energy, and recover | |
valuable metals. | |
We also take in clinker dust, as a byproduct from our cement plants, and use | |
components such as calcium as auxiliary raw materials for smelting. After | |
use, clinker dust turns into copper slag, which is then recycled back into raw | |
materials at our cement plants. |
Cement
- Recycling Industrial Waste and Byproducts
Using a burning process that reaches temperatures of 1,450°C, our cement plants detoxify and make efective use of industrial waste and other difcult- to-treat materials without generating any waste. As well as using substances such as construction sludge, coal ash, copper slag byproducts from copper smelters, and gypsum as raw materials, we also turn materials such as plastic, tires and wood back into cement, by using them as a source of thermal energy.
To deal with chlorine contained in waste products, which can afect plant operations and the quality of cement, we have installed and continue to upgrade high performance chlorine bypass facilities at each of our plants. To further promote the efective use of waste products meanwhile, we are committed to strengthening the capabilities of our waste processing facilities, through measures such as upgrading pre-treatment facilities for waste plastic and processing facilities for waste gypsum board.
Amount accepted and volume of per unit production of waste and byproducts
Environment & Energy
■ Home Appliances Recycling
Home appliances are made by combinations of various materials such as | Trend of recycled amount |
glass, plastic and rubber as well as metals such as steel, aluminum, and | |
copper. Home appliances are frst of all disassembled manually, then crushed | |
and sorted at our home appliances recycling plants. We have adopted | |
several advanced sorting processes for components and materials, and are | |
always trying to create more value from recovered materials and to improve | |
recycling efciency. We recover copper and other precious metals from | |
recovered copper-based materials and printed circuit boards in our copper | |
smelting process. Thus, we maximize the efect of synergies within our | |
group. In fscal 2021, we recycled 2,987 thousand units of home appliances | |
at six plants of our fve afliated companies(6 companies, 7 plants, 3,672 | |
thousand units)*. Recycling of this volume could reduce landfll disposal | |
equivalent to approximately 120 thousand tons. | |
*There are 6 companies and 7 factories for home appliance recycling, but 5 | |
companies and 6 factories are subject to LCA evaluation. |
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Aluminum Business
- Recycling Aluminum Beverage Cans
We have been operating a total CAN TO CAN recycling system within the Mitsubishi Materials Group (Universal Can Corp. and Mitsubishi Aluminum Co., Ltd.), based on a cycle of can manufacturing, collecting, melting, casting and rolling, for over 40 years now. Our system is uniquely integrated within the Group and enables us to process used beverage cans (UBC) on a leading scale domestically, thereby helping to conserve aluminum resources. We also do our bit to prevent global warming by manufacturing slabs of recycled aluminum from UBC. As this only requires about 3% as much energy as manufacturing aluminum from scratch, it enables us to substantially reduce energy consumption, and it also enables us to contribute to preventing global warming.
Domestic recycling of aluminum used beverage cans and the percentage of those cans collected by the Mitsubishi Materials Group (FY2007 = 100%)
TOPICS Aluminum Beverage Can Recycling that Responds to the Need to Conserve the Global Environment
Aluminum beverage can recycling has its long history. At the Mitsubishi Materials Group, we proactively recycle aluminum beverage cans, thereby contributing to the conservation of the global environment.
According to a survey by Japan Aluminum Can Recycling Association, the recycling rate of used aluminum beverage cans in Japan has remained high for more than 10 years, exceeding 90% (94.0% in fscal 2021). Some used beverage cans are exported overseas even where they are reused appropriately.
A little less than 70% (71.0% in fscal 2021) of aluminum beverage cans recycled in Japan are reused as new aluminum beverage cans (Can-to- Can recycling). This rate is outstandingly higher than that of PET-to-PET recycling, which has been the 20% range (24.3% in fscal 2020: Data from The Council for PET Bottle Recycling).
The amount of energy consumed to recycle used aluminum beverage cans into new aluminum ingots is much lower, at only approx. 3% than that consumed to make new ingots through the process of smelting and refning aluminum ores (bauxite). Accordingly, CO2 emissions from the generation of electric power needed for recycling are quite low.
As seen above, aluminum beverage can recycling, which is already established as a stable social system, is a versatile approach to reducing waste, conserving resources and energy, preventing global warming, and presenting solutions to the recent concerns over marine plastic pollution.
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Mitsubishi Materials Corporation published this content on 30 September 2021 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 30 September 2021 03:31:09 UTC.