Tackling Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) in the UK

愿景-该奖学金旨在从根本上改变线性废弃电气和电子设备（WESTERN）系统，为英国的电气和电子设备（WESTERN）发展低碳循环经济（CE）。该奖学金包括一项研究计划，该计划为WESTERN建立了一个创新的整体系统设计方法，将系统工程，工程设计和产品服务系统设计方法相结合。该奖学金将领导必要的学术工作，支持英国通过有效的减少，再利用，维修，再制造，回收和回收，使英国成为世界上第一个消除垃圾的国家。理由和战略意义-数字化的快速发展给经济和生活带来了颠覆性的变化，以及电气和电子设备（EEE）消费的增长。废弃电气和电子设备（WESTERN）现在是英国和全球增长最快的废物流。英国每年人均产生高达24.9公斤的垃圾，并将155，000吨垃圾扔进家庭垃圾箱。2013年，英国制定了废物管理条例，以鼓励安全和负责任的收集、回收和再利用。然而，Wyndham的收集率表明，英国未能实现其目标。市场上只有不到35%的垃圾被回收，这意味着绝大多数垃圾被送往垃圾填埋场，焚烧或非法出口到其他国家。发展循环经济（CE）有望为英国带来广泛的经济、环境和社会效益。在英国未回收的Wessels中发现的贵金属价值每年超过3.7亿英镑。钨合金还包括许多关键原材料（如镁、钴和钨），这些原材料对英国的供应链风险很高，也很重要。例如，中国提供了欧盟98%的稀土元素供应，南非提供了欧盟71%的铂。因此，增加从Wessels回收此类关键原材料是英国减轻供应链风险的战略优先事项。此外，有效恢复温室气体对实现英国净零排放目标至关重要。每收集和回收一吨电子废物，就可避免1.44吨二氧化碳排放。最后，未经妥善管理并泄漏到环境中的废物可能对自然和人类健康造成极大的破坏。环保署署长亦会消除对高污染采矿及物料提炼业的依赖。学术贡献-现有研究已解决环保署在不同生命周期阶段的问题，包括：材料提取（例如技术金属圆度），制造（例如，在Wessels增加消费后塑料），分配（例如循环商业模式）、使用（例如情感耐久性、修复）和寿命终止（例如新型回收技术）。然而，目前缺乏一个整体的观点，这是需要过渡到一个充分的CE为可持续发展。该奖学金将解决这些局限性，并建立在一个既定的研究机构，为英国的低碳，CE为绿色建筑开发新的解决方案。它在学术上是优秀的，因为它将：（1）产生关于英国WESTERN系统的科学知识和数据，其中包括物质流分析和相关碳排放数据。这些数据可用于为决策，政策和研究提供信息;（2）为英国的CE开发新的（技术支持的）解决方案。这些解决方案可以通过循环产品设计和循环商业模式框架在其他环境中复制;（3）建立一种创新的整体系统设计方法，可用于研究其他材料流（例如塑料，纺织品），以实现低碳，资源节约型的CE。

Vision - The fellowship seeks to radically transform the linear Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) system to develop a low-carbon, Circular Economy (CE) for Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) in the UK. This fellowship incorporates a programme of research that establishes an innovative whole systems design approach to WEEE, integrating systems engineering, engineering design and product-service system design methodologies. The fellowship will to lead the academic work necessary to support a fully CE for EEE in the UK, through effective reduce, reuse, repair, remanufacturing, recycling and recovery, with the aim of making the UK the first country in the world to eliminate WEEE.Rationale and strategic importance - The rapid development of digitalisation has brought disruptive changes to the economy and life, as well as a growth in the consumption of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE). Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) is now the fastest growing waste stream in the UK and globally. The UK generates up to 24.9kg per head and throws 155,000 tonnes of WEEE in household bins every year. In 2013, the UK set out WEEE Regulations, to encourage safe and responsible collection, recycling and recovery. However, WEEE collection rates show that the UK is failing to meet its targets. Less that 35% of EEE placed on the market is recovered, meaning that the vast majority is sent to landfill, incinerated or illegally exported to other countries at its end of life. Developing a Circular Economy (CE) for EEE is expected to result in widespread economic, environmental and societal benefits for the UK. The value of precious metals found within UK's unrecovered WEEE is over £370 million annually. WEEE also includes many critical raw materials (e.g. magnesium, cobalt and tungsten) which are of high supply chain risk and importance to the UK. For example, China provides 98% of the EU's supply of rare earth elements, and South Africa provides 71% of the EU's platinum. Increasing the recovery of such critical raw materials from WEEE is therefore a strategic priority for the UK to mitigate supply chain risks. In addition, the effective recovery of WEEE is critical to achieving the UK's net zero targets. For every tonne of e-waste collected and recycled, 1.44 tonnes of CO2 emissions are avoided. Finally, WEEE that is not properly managed and leaks into the environment can be extremely damaging to nature and human health. A CE for EEE will also eliminate reliance on highly-polluting mining and material extraction industries.Academic contribution - Existing research has addressed problems in the WEEE sector across different life-cycle phases including: material extraction (e.g. technology metals circularity), manufacturing (e.g. increasing post-consumer plastic in WEEE), distribution (e.g. circular business models), use (e.g. emotional durability, repair), and, end of life (e.g. novel recycling technologies). However, a holistic perspective is currently lacking, which is needed to transition to a fully CE for EEE. This fellowship will address these limitations and build on an established body of research to develop novel solutions for a low-carbon, CE for EEE in the UK. It is academically excellent in that it will: (1) generate scientific knowledge and data on the WEEE system in the UK, which includes material flow analysis and data on related carbon emissions. This data can be used to inform decision-making, policy and research; (2) develop novel (technology-enabled) solutions for a CE for EEE in the UK. These solutions can be replicated in other contexts via circular product design and circular business model frameworks; (3) establish an innovative whole systems design methodological approach, which can be applied to study other material streams (e.g. plastics, textiles), to enable a low-carbon, resource-efficient CE.