Our offering in circularity
Supporting circularity
Global demand for raw materials is growing rapidly, and the scarcity of critical materials is a significant challenge for our customer industries. In addition to virgin source materials, there is a growing interest in the use of scrap materials – both to meet the growing demand for energy transition metals and to reduce the carbon footprint.
Supporting the circular economy is an important element in Metso’s sustainable Metso Plus offering and innovations. This includes, e.g., recycling and reusing materials, providing equipment and services to extend product lifetimes, and developing technologies to support the upcycling of waste materials.
Our equipment is built from strong and durable input materials, ensuring a long product life and minimizing the environmental impacts during its lifetime. In addition to environmental benefits, circular solutions are commercially attractive to our customers, as equipment wear and tear can cause considerable direct and indirect costs. We also offer solutions for processing demolition waste and for waste recovery.
Long-term planning of energy consumption, maintenance, repairs, reuse, remanufacturing, refurbishment and recycling of parts are Metso's ways of minimizing the resources, waste and emissions required in our customers’ processes.
Recycling of electronic scrap
One of our circular economy solutions is focused on the recycling of electronic scrap such as printed circuit boards and electronic devices. Globally, this is one of the fastest growing waste streams. Electronic scrap contains copper, gold and other valuable metals. As primary raw materials are being depleted, there is an increasing need for safe and ecological reuse of both primary and secondary raw materials.
When properly treated, these complex raw materials can be recycled and reused. Metso is here to help its customers face these challenges, with solutions that address the following:
- To treat e-scrap safely and efficiently, it is important to use automated smelting solutions that are complemented with highly efficient gas cleaning and wastewater treatment. Compliance with the strictest environmental regulations is essential.
- High recovery and process availability are important. Metso can offer this for a wide variety of secondary raw materials - and even for the refined metal product.
- Metso can support customers on the development of a complete e-scrap treatment process flowsheet, technology, commissioning and advisory services.
Mill liner recycling service - our latest circularity innovation
Metso has been developing its sustainable mill lining recycling service circularity solution for over a decade. This solution enables efficient separation of different mill liner materials, allowing valuable rubber and steel components to be either reused in the manufacturing of new products or recycled. Metso piloted the solution in 2023 with a customer in Finland and in Sweden. In 2024, we expanded this service offering to the Chilean market. Expansion to the North American market is ongoing.
Mill lining recycling concept has many benefits, including the recovery of reusable materials, reduced CO2 emissions, as well as the use of the safest and most efficient lining solution, resulting in improved environmental efficiency and less material being sent to landfills.
Material efficiency
The recycling of asphalt and other demolition waste, as well as the use of manufactured sand, is quickly increasing in popularity. Construction waste consists typically of concrete and brick, rebar, wood, plastic, gypsum and insulation materials. Iron has a high reuse value, and it is easy to separate with the correct tools. Also, lighter materials such as wood and plastic can be separated and recycled, while the concrete gets crushed and screened to specification.
Crushed concrete lends itself to many uses such as filling, road base and riprap. Reusing fossil bitumen, as well as aggregates in recycled asphalt, makes sense both financially and environmentally. Metso is a recycling specialist with decades worth of experience and our products are ideal for concrete and asphalt crushing.