What is the Circular Economy Network+ in Transportation Systems?

CENTS is an EPSRC-funded research network for the sustainable transport community.

Network Rationale

Whilst easy mobility has become a way of life for many, the machines (planes, automobiles, trains and ships) that enable this are both highly resource consuming and environmentally damaging in production, use and at the end of their working lives.

Over the years, great attention has been paid to increasing the energy efficiencies of these systems, but the same effort has not been put into optimising their resource efficiency.

Numerous potential benefits could be realised if Circular Economy principles were integrated, including: Recovery of energy intensive and/or technology metals, reuse/remanufacture of components, lower carbon materials substitutions, and improved energy and material efficiency.

CENTS will be forward-looking, in terms of developing future designs, business models and manufacturing approaches so that emergent transport systems are inherently circular.