What shall we do with the End-of-Life vessel ?

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What shall we do withthe End-of-Life vessel ?

• John Summerscales
• Advanced Composites Manufacturing Centre
• University of Plymouth
• ... with input from Miggy Singh (UoP SMSE),
• Ken Wittamore (Triskel Consultants Limited), and
• Sue Halliwell (NetComposites)

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Political drivers

• The European Community aims to be the most
  sustainable federation of countries in the
  world
• Waste Framework Directive (WFD)
• Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control
  (IPPC)
• also pressure from the environmental lobby
• End-of-Life Vehicle (ELV) for cars
• Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)
  directive
• ?? End-of-Life Vessel ??

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Commercial drivers

• Waste minimisation is a basic management
  philosophyto achieve a more profitable business
• cost savings thro improved resource efficiency
• compliance reduces litigation costs
• risk reduction improves investor confidence
• eco-friendly is good for customer relations

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End-of-life (EoL) vessel

• Annette Roux (2007)President of FIN(French
  boatbuilding federation) andPresident of Groupe
  Beneteau, said
• industry has worked hard on
• techniques to destroy old fibreglass hulls,
• instead of owners abandoning them,
• but so far we are having difficulty finding any
  they are in good condition
• and sailors continue to use them

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USS Guardian FRP sheathed oak-and-fir wooden
hull aground on coral reefSulu Sea (Phillipines)
17-Jan-2013
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EuCIA European Composites Industry Association

• Competitive CompositesSustainability and
  Recycling Challenges,Brussels, 04 May 2011
• debate reporthttp//www.eucia.org/files/EuCIA2
  0Debate20Report2004052011.pdf

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Size of problem

• 95 of boats lt24m long are thermoset FRP
• will not consider thermoplastic composites here
• production of 115 000 tonnes per year in Europe
• marine composites 7 of total composites
  market
• typically hulls gtgt cars, so need cutting before
  crushing
• some common issues with civil engineering
• reduce size for cost-effective transport to
  process site
• inherently tough, so high energy consumption

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Recycling hierarchy

• waste reduction gt reuse gt recovery gt disposal
• manufacture lean materials usage
• reuse vessel components materials
• recover fibres pyrolysis etc for feedstock
• disposal scuttle incinerate compost if
  bio-based
• landfill as a last resort
• beware toxic compounds in
• bilges, engines, lubricants, etc and
• anti-fouling coatings

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Waste reduction in manufacture

• Why buy it, then throw it out ?
• analyse what leaves the plant in skips and drains
• Why not recycle waste ?
• small volumes
• only small specialist marketse.g. carbon fibre
  prepreg gt jewellery
• no clear economic benefits
• Italy ENA eco-design LCA criteria ELB FRP
  waste to secondary raw material

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Waste reductionby re-use

• Second-hand market, e.g.
• HMS Wilton now Essex Yacht Club HQ
• HMS Bicester to Greek Navy HS Europa
• Every naval architect has his own design
• could multiple designs use standard hatch cover
• then a strong second hand market might develop

Image from Essex Yacht Club homepage
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Waste reduction by re-use(repair or component
replacement)

• Team Phillips and US SSN 711 "San Francisco"

Images from http//www.nmmc.co.uk/index.php?pageN
ews_Centrenewsid18 (left)and
http//news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1026891.stm (centre
and right) http//navysite.de/ssn/ssn711_6.jpg
(left), http//www.subcommittee.com/cgi-bin/ikonb
oard.cgi?s0584a1450d8de1bca4f7443b07a0f89factST
f27t115st20 (centre)and http//www.subcommi
ttee.com/cgi-bin/ikonboard.cgi?s49d5aa6747d287245
59df35b205650a3actSTf27t115st10 (right)
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Waste reductionby material recovery

• Four classes
• primary to materials of equivalent performance
• secondary to materials of inferior performance
• tertiary to chemicals and fuel
• quaternary to energy

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Waste reductionby material recovery

• Ground GFRP can replace 15 SMC or BMC
• Finland (state-driven initiative with recycling
  company)
• 1000 small open craft recycled to date
• France (six competing companies)
• 250 dinghies lt6m treated so far
• Italy (Materials Recovery Platform ATECO ID37)
• Data from EuCIA report

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Wasste reduction by material recovery
(solvolysis)

• EURECOMP FP7 project (2009-2012)
• Solvolysis sub- or super-critical
  thermochemical depolymerisation in water (or
  CO2?)
• clean recovered fibres with little residuebut
  may need sizing agents replaced
• liquid fractioncontains e.g. resin monomers and
  benzoic acid
• JEC Composites magazine, 2011, (65), 24-25

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Waste reduction by materials recovery (CFRP)

• carbon fibres not degraded during thermal
  recovery
• Recycled Carbon Fibre Limited (was Milled
  Carbon) www.recycledcarbonfibre.com
• TSB CRD FibreCycle programme (2007-2010)
  www.fibrecycleproject.org.uk
• random CFRP ?o0.375 Vf20 Ef240 GPa Youngs
  modulus 18 GPa
• woven GRFP ?o0.5 Vf50 Ef72 GPa Youngs
  modulus 18 GPa

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Waste disposal (recycling?)

• France
• GPIC energy recovery in cement kilns
• costs for grinding and kiln use gt landfill
• Germany
• Zajons Logistik and Holcim AG
• 60kt Turbine blades shredded then to cement kilns
  (15GJ/tonne)
• ash and slag incorporated into cement
• Norway
• mechanical recycling
• energy recovery in cement kilns
• pyrolysis
• chemical recycling via solvolysis (GjenKomp
  project)

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Waste disposal (incineration)

• thermoset resins char rather than burn ?
• tales of boatyard blazes with fuel still in GRP
  tanks
• GRP in incineration needs tobe well-mixed with
  other waste
• charge for GRP 120-150/tvs 30/t for ordinary
  wastes

Up Helly Aa (not FRP)
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If all else fails, then scuttle ?

• gt35 m (100 ft) not disturbed by storms
• gt75 m (250 ft) remain in place inhabited by
  fish for 30-40 years
• may be appropriate for use in coastal defences
  against sea-level rise
• recreational diving (e.g. RN frigate HMS Scylla
  in Whitesand Bay)
• requires
• cleaning bilges, anti-fouling
• attention to anchoring
• LCA to justify post-use management
• convince stakeholders of positive benefit
• beware of scour

HMS Scylla
Image from http//www.bbc.co.uk/devon/news_featur
es/images/scylla/scylla_bang180.jpg
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Effects of scour

• abrasion by pebbles and/or sand leads topolymer
  micro-particles
• particles accumulate toxins from seawater
• high toxin levels on particle surfaces
• particles ingested by marine animals
• microparticles can enter circulatory system of
  e.g. mussels

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If everything else fails, then landfill

• UK Waste Classification Scheme
• hazardous, non-hazardous or inert
• composites classified as non-hazardous, under
  biodegradable wastes and other non-special
  waste
• Costs of landfill rising each year

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Life Cycle Assessment

• To quantify environmental impacts need analysis
  of
• Environmental Impact Classification Factors
  (EICF)
• BS8905 adds Land Use
• also consider general nuisance of ... dust,
  noise and odour ?

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Conclusions

• we need to
• develop an effective method for
  reducingend-of-life components to manageable
  size
• consider vessel end-of-life considerationsbefore
  political solutions are imposed
• undertake life cycle assessments to support any
  claims made for environmental benefit

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if more depth required ...