Recycling of contaminated metallic chip based on eco-efficiency and eco-effectiveness approaches

Abstract The metal-mechanic sector faces the problems associated with environmental management, and urgently has to adapt innovating technologies to productive processes, in order to reach sustainability. So, the objective of the present study was to evaluate the eco-efficiency and the eco-effectiveness of methods used to clean metallic chips contaminated with cutting fluid in firms that operate in the metal-mechanic sector. A study on the recycling of metallic chips contaminated with cutting fluid was carried out, analyzing the cleaning methods used, the efficiency of each method, the destination of waste that cannot be recycled. The most eco-efficient and eco-effective method was evaluated according to the characteristics mentioned. This evaluation was carried out based on criteria identified in the literature to evaluate methods as eco-efficient and eco-effective. It was possible to verify that only eco-efficient methods have been applied by industry. Some of them includes some eco-effective practices. The results showed that the habit of repairing, reusing, recycling, and define destination of the waste, instead of promoting actions such as the reshaping of a productive system in closed loop, in which waste is not generated, is even more practical and realistic today. However, it is clear that eco-efficient and eco-effective principles improve environmental performance of firms, reducing expenses with inputs, raw materials, and destination of waste, in addition to contributing to higher levels of sustainability. The results show that developing cyclic methods that underline the reuse of a given waste as raw material has environmental and economic advantages to organizations, to local communities, and also from a regional and global standpoint, conserving non-renewable natural resources. Nevertheless, the method identified as eco-effective confirms these advantages by melting (recycle) metallic alloys as byproduct free of cutting fluid. So, it prevents the atmospheric emissions from the burning of the fluid, reduces solid waste generation process promoting economic and environmental benefits. The prospect of developing new materials from byproducts in a closed cycle has shown to be essential for the society sustainable development, which is the main contribution of this study.