End-of-life perspective for advanced energy storage, mobility and electronics technology materials: a gateway to a sustainable circular economy

The world is witnessing unprecedented advances in the field of renewable energy generation, storage,
electrical mobility, and digital technologies. These developments are necessary to achieve our
ambitions of becoming a green and sustainable society that retains economic prosperity. Behind the
scenes this transition is enabled by a multitude of increasingly complex materials marked by impressive
optoelectronic and/ magnetic properties. Not only does the complexity of materials increase, but also
similar is true for the compositional architecture of machines, gadgets and installations. This is
combined with an ever-increasing speed with which advanced technologies penetrate global markets
and the often very limited life span / planned obsolence of many advanced technologies. Together,
these factors yield a rapidly increasing volume of waste materials of complex composition. Such
complex waste materials do not only contain a vast variety of valuable resources but, if left untreated,
may cause great harm to humans and the environment. It is, therefore, obvious that we need no less
than a paradigm shift. EoL products should be regarded not as waste but as valuable secondary
resource. Technological solutions are urgently needed to drive the transition towards holistic recycling
concepts.
The simple, holistic and yet sustainable answer to all these questions is the adoption of circular
economy strategies. This talk will present the opportunities and challenges in management of
advanced materials with end-of-life perspective. How the fundamental understanding of materials
properties and quantities is necessary in viable circular economy process developments and
implementation. It will be complemented by select examples of technologies developed for the
recycling of relevant materials and its materials safety-related implications.