The role of design in circular economy solutions for critical materials

The accelerating pace of resource consumption threatens long-term availability of critical materials: those resources that play an essential role in modern society but are vulnerable to supply chain disruptions. Established resource management strategies have struggled to reduce the risks of metal criticality, and the demand for these materials continues to grow. Circular economy offers a new paradigm for addressing metal criticality through solutions that enable material and product reuse, remanufacturing, and recycling. However, products containing critical materials are rarely designed to be upgraded, reused, or disassembled at end of life to access the valuable materials contained within. Here, we explore the potential for design interventions across the technology life cycle that can enable circular economy solutions and minimize risks of material criticality.

Automated summary

The accelerating pace of resource consumption poses a threat to the long-term availability of critical materials. Traditional resource management strategies have struggled to mitigate the risks of metal criticality, while the circular economy offers a new paradigm for addressing this issue. Products containing critical materials are often not designed for easy upgrading, reuse, or disassembly at the end of their life cycle, hindering the access to valuable materials within.