recycling

• What is a common source material for the manufacturing industry to make new products?

  Freshly extracted raw materials
• Besides freshly extracted raw materials, what other materials can the manufacturing industry reuse?

  Used materials
• From what two sources might the wastes that can be reused in manufacturing come?

  Pre-consumer and post-consumer wastes
• What process produces waste trimmings in manufacturing?

  Cutting or stamping
• What must be done to most materials in domestic waste to be effectively recycled?

  They must be separated
• Why is separating domestic waste before collection most effective for recycling?

  Prevents reduction in quality caused by mixing
• What specific problem does mixing paper and food waste cause during recycling?

  Reduction in quality
• Besides the public, what other group can use recycled elements in manufacturing?

  Industry
• What are the two key characteristics about using recycling elements in manufacturing, from an industrial perspective?

  Costly and complex
• What does a comparison of recycling aluminum with using newly extracted aluminum demonstrate?

  A range of advantages and disadvantages
• What is an advantage of extracting aluminum ore in bulk for manufacturing?

  Major economies of scale and lower unit cost
• Why might recycling involve higher transportation costs compared to using newly extracted aluminum?

  Smaller quantities of materials which is more expensive
• Why is bulk transport not possible when recycling materials?

  Smaller quantities of materials
• How do recycled materials compare in weight to the original raw materials?

  Recycled materials will be lighter
• Why might processing smaller quantities of recycled materials increase labour costs?

  More handling and sorting is required
• What is a characteristic of recycling work that contrasts with raw material extraction?

  Less skill or training is required
• What is a major limitation regarding the recycling of mixed metal alloys?

  Cannot easily be separated
• In what applications can recycled aluminum alloys not be used?

  Where pure aluminium is needed
• What makes identifying the composition of recycled materials a challenge?

  It is labor intensive and slow work
• What is an environmental benefit of recycling aluminum compared to extracting it from bauxite?

  Saves the energy needed for extraction
• When might the energy savings from recycling aluminum be negated?

  If small quantities are collected
• What is essential for the success of post-consumer recycling schemes?

  Public cooperation to separate wastes
• How can used materials be lost from the recycling stream?

  Litter is discarded
• Where else can used materials be lost, other than when litter is discarded?

  Placed in general waste for landfill
• What economic principle enables lower unit costs when extracting aluminum ore in bulk due to transport?

  Economies of scale