147721 20260217205609.0 doi 10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.144349 sideral 141134 ART-2024-141134 eng Torrubia, Jorge Universidad de Zaragoza (orcid)0000-0001-9282-1428 Recovery of copper from electronic waste: An energy transition approach to decarbonise the industry 2024 Access copy available to the general public Unrestricted Copper is essential for a decarbonised economy, yet its production remains heavily dependent on primary extraction processes which still rely on fossil fuels. Thus, there is growing interest in recovering copper from secondary sources, such as waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). Moreover, the potential for utilising renewable resources in copper recycling remains unexplored. Therefore, this study applied FactSage and HSC Chemistry software to model and simulate the pyrometallurgical route for copper recovery from copper scrap and waste printed circuit boards (WPCB). OpenLCA was employed for a life cycle assessment (LCA) of three scenarios: (i) conventional, (ii) green hydrogen, and (iii) hydrogen produced using grid electricity. The results showed that the carbon footprint of copper production was reduced by 71–96% in the conventional scenario (0.3–0.5 kg-CO2-eq./kg-Cu) and by 93–97% in the green hydrogen scenario (0.1–0.2 kg-CO2-eq./kg-Cu) compared to primary production. However, the use of hydrogen produced with grid electricity resulted in a significant increase in the carbon footprint, even exceeding the conventional scenario. Therefore, the integration of renewable energy sources is crucial for achieving low-emission secondary copper production, contributing to a cleaner metal supply for the energy transition. info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/HORIZON EUROPE/101091668/EU/Aragon's REgional Hub for circularity: Demonstration Of Local industrial-urban symbiosis initiatives/REDOL info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MICINN-RESTORE PID2023-148401OB-I00 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess by-nc-nd https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/deed.es 10.0 2024 ENGINEERING, ENVIRONMENTAL 9 / 83 = 0.108 2024 Q1 T1 GREEN & SUSTAINABLE SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 12 / 103 = 0.117 2024 Q1 T1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES 23 / 376 = 0.061 2024 Q1 T1 2.174 2024 Environmental Science (miscellaneous) 2024 Q1 Strategy and Management 2024 Q1 Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment 2024 Q1 Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering 2024 Q1 20.7 2024 info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion Parvez, Ashak Mahmud Sajjad, Mohsin García Paz, Felipe Alejandro van den Boogaart, Karl Gerald 5004 590 Universidad de Zaragoza Dpto. Ingeniería Mecánica Área Máquinas y Motores Térmi. 485 (2024), 144349 [11 pp.] J. clean. prod. Journal of Cleaner Production 0959-6526 4553869 http://zaguan.unizar.es/record/147721/files/texto_completo.pdf Versión publicada 2648907 http://zaguan.unizar.es/record/147721/files/texto_completo.jpg?subformat=icon icon Versión publicada oai:zaguan.unizar.es:147721 articulos driver 2026-02-17-20:48:17 ARTICLE