Predictive and Flexible Circular Economy Approaches for Highly Integrated Products and their Materials as Given in E-Mobility and ICT

Abstract

The control of degraded products, waste streams and secondary raw materials that can be produced from those must be in line with demand within the framework of an Advanced Circular Economy. Material requirements are developing dynamically depending on product development and consumer behavior. Accordingly, the recycling system must also behave dynamically and predictively and has to be transformed into stable, efficient but flexible process routes. This can also lead to a shift in the significance and sequence of the respective materials of main and secondary value in a process chain. This paper presents a novel approach for a smart and predictive circular economy. The approach consists of three major parts: An open information marketplace to meet information needs, suitable economic assessment and planning methods, and a dynamic optimization of the recycling process chain, e.g., selection of process steps and their sequence.