Future disassembly and recycling technology: results of a Delphi study

This article presents the results of a Delphi study that was carried out between November 1996 and March 1997. The subject of this study is future disassembly and recycling technology for the electronics and the automotive industry. The results reflect the opinions of a panel of about 70 specialists, preselected by the authors. Issues in this Delphi Study range from the possibilities for automatic disassembly and sophisticated material separation and sorting techniques to the development of recycling output prices. All issues were investigated for technological feasibility and for economic attractiveness. The main conclusion of this study shows that obstacles for future disassembly and recycling technology are of an economic rather than a technological nature. Automatic disassembly will probably gain importance in the next 25 years, but only for specific product categories. Sorting and separation techniques will become increasingly sophisticated.