Jet Engine Recycle Model : A Case Study to Design a General Model to be Used on Jet Engines

Abstract: The focus on sustainability development together with the growing market of end-of-life jet engines is a reason for performing research on how to improve the recycling of jet engines. The reuse and recycling of the jet engines contributes to decreasing the need for new extracted material and processing and manufacturing new parts. The economic benefit from increasing the recycling is the main driver for the research, though both the economic and ecological benefits are important. This research aims to create a model for jet engine recycling, in order to have a systematic approach to which parts, components and materials can be reused in the aviation industry or be recycled in the non-aviation industry. New possibilities for recycling demands identifying new industries to market the available parts to. The research revealed that regulatory limitations by the aviation authorities is a barrier for reuse of some parts. Parts that have a life limit have to be scrapped when reaching its life limit. The repair development is limited, as any repair has to be approved by the manufacturers and added in their maintenance manuals before it can be performed. The economic benefit from reusing parts and components in the aviation industry is higher than the economic benefit from recycling these for non-aviation industries. This research has resulted in a model for jet engine recycling that is presented and explained. The managerial development that is needed to implement the recycling model is also explained.