Project Mentors: Dr. Wojtek Misiolek and Nicholas Rockwell, Materials Science and Engineering
2024 Impact Fellows:
Priya Blaise '27
Ayushka Dhakal '27
Cherrie Ruan '27
Katharine Van Buskirk '27
Project Description:
How can we revolutionize metal recycling for a more sustainable future?
With a rapidly growing population of over 114 million people, the Philippines experiences continually increasing demand for products and infrastructure, resulting in a substantial consumption of raw materials–including metals. Currently, the country imports aluminum and aluminum alloys (in various forms) and exports its aluminum scrap. The importing and use of this aluminum necessitates additional processing, resulting in increased carbon emissions. The need in the Philippines to increase metal recycling–for aluminum in particular–is significant. Standard aluminum production can typically emit 16.7 metric tons of CO2 for every 1 metric ton of aluminum produced. However, methods exist to greatly reduce these associated emissions, such as the use of solid phase processing of existing scrap material. There is also the potential for enabling the development of backyard industries in the Philippines which could create higher-value, artisanal products using recycled aluminum and other metals. These approaches could assist the upscaling of metal recycling while addressing the depletion of natural resources and exacerbation of environmental problems associated with aluminum production.
This project aims to establish a circular economy for aluminum within the Philippines. Achieving this means gaining an understanding of current recycling processes, and the interaction among importers, metal product manufacturers, “junk shops”, consolidators, recyclers, and exporters. The ultimate goals of this project are to work with existing project stakeholders to map out the current flow of metal within the country, obtain funding for solid phase processing equipment, and perform techno-economic assessments with current metal-forming companies.
Through the continuation of these initiatives begun by the 2024 MetalMatter team, this team will build on the Loewy Institute’s expertise to reduce the strain on natural resources and mitigate the environmental impact of metal waste. We invite students with any field of interest to join us in this research-driven journey toward a more sustainable and environmentally responsible Philippines. This project may particularly appeal to students with backgrounds in materials science, design, mechanical engineering, environmental engineering, architecture, economics, and civil engineering.
