Circular economy linking forward and reverse logistics towards circularity (IMAGE)
Caption
The progressive industrial revolution of the past two centuries relied on the extraction of natural resources from the lithosphere, and then they are processed and transformed into desired products, which at the end of their useful life (EoL) became wastes of uncertain environmental fate. In this one-directional logistics, most materials flow to sinks, at which the notorious substances contaminate the environment. It has been recognized that some materials in EoL products may be transformed into useful products again, in a process known as reverse logistics (waste reclamation), through the collection, component harvesting, refurbishment, reuse, remanufacturing, recycling, and material extraction process, all positioned within the circular economy framework to decrease externalized waste.
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Zeng and Li, 2021, reprinted with permission © The Author(s)
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