Discarded window blinds contain aluminium slats and steel fittings. A recycler uses a magnet to remove most of the steel. The recycler can then stop after method 1 or use additional sorting in method 2.
The recycler can sell all the material produced. There are no other processing costs.
| Method | Aluminium in recovered material (%) | Recycling energy (MJ per kg) | Processing cost (£ per kg) | Product made | Minimum aluminium required for the product (%) | Selling price (£ per kg) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1: magnetic sorting only | 96 | 8.0 | 0.18 | shelf brackets | 95 | 0.60 |
| 2: magnetic sorting and additional sorting | 99 | 9.6 | 0.42 | thin panels | 98 | 1.05 |
Evaluate which method the recycler should use.
99 exam-style questions on AQA GCSE Chemistry 10.2 Life cycle assessment and recycling, covering 10.2.1 Life cycle assessment and 10.2.2 Ways of reducing the use of resources. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.