Characterization of used automotive oil filters for recycling

Most of the over 425 million automotive oil filters used each year in the US are land disposed raising the risk of polluting ground- and surface-water, wasting valuable natural resources, and consuming limited landfill space. Oil filters removed from a vehicle for disposal contain 30-50 wt.% steel and 45-60 wt.% used motor oil depending on the design. Although several different processes are used to recycle used oil filters, an important factor to the recyclability of oil filters is the design of the oil filter. This study examines oil filters to determine the effect of design on the recyclability of oil filters allowing for improved recyclability in future products. The factors that were shown to increase recyclability of filters (higher percentage steel content) were decreasing overall weight, decreasing volume, smaller aspect ratios, and shorter filters. Copyright (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.