In order to maximize the efficiency of ever increasing aluminium recycling, different mutually
related aspects need to be optimised. Economic efficiency of aluminium recycling is crucially dependent
on the costs, arising at different stages of recycling process. Among these, transportation costs
represent very important part of overall cost balance. The general model, based on the principles of
reverse logistics, was developed and applied with the aim of reducing the extent of internal aluminium
scrap transportation required between certain production units of an aluminium manufacturing plant.
Linear optimisation model was used for calculating minimum annual transport costs and optimal way
of in-plant transport for two transport models in order to determine the most efficient option. In case
of in-plant aluminium recycling only collected aluminium materials are transported which means that
the most important factors in such case are fixed transport costs and variable transport costs, latter
depending on distance, transported quantity, energy used for transport and other operating costs. In the
first transport model, the direct transport of collected aluminium scrap from each individual source
to in-plant processing units was assumed. In the second transport model, one collection site was
assumed where scrap is collected and then transported to in-plant processing units. The optimisation
model was also applied for determining a dependence of optimal transport model on annual quantities