Q . What has been the traditional area for the usage of ECO products?
A. Because PP has been the largest waste stream for recycled plastic and still remains so, then traditionally we have seen applications such as wheel arch liners, engine shields and boot trim being the main focus for recycled plastics. All these are large components, so potentially the ones with the largest cost saving. These components are suited to the waste stream that has been available in recent years, which was predominantly co-polymer PP/PE higher impact type, this coupled with the added benefit that they can be produced in black and surface finish does not have to be class A.
Q. What areas are current components that are looking to use ECO products?
A. Albis is seeing more and more opportunities for recycled engineering plastics, PA for engine components such as cam/rocker covers, timing belt covers, engine shields and battery box housings, the supply situation with prime PA66 has accelerated the substitution in this area. Recycled PC+ABS is being used for interior trim like glove box housings, lower trim mouldings and painted upper trim mouldings. Also, due to the improved paint removal and sorting systems now in place, high quality recycled bumper/dashboard mouldings are being used at a percentage in production of new bumpers. Filled PP’s are also being used for fan shrouds, fans, battery covers, and engine shields.
Q. what are the future material trends?
A. One of the current trends in the automotive industry at the moment is light weighting to help reduce CO2 emissions and increase fuel efficiency. This can be achieved - reducing the density of the material used by replacing traditional fillers (glass fibre and minerals) with lower density fillers such as CF. Albis’s acquisition of WIPAG, and the subsequent investment to increase the capacity of our rCF production, has enabled Albis to explore this light weighting trend by replacing traditional PA GF and PA GF/MF polymers with rCF PA and in some cases even rCF PP. To gain the biggest benefits, the components need to be large, such as front end modules, pillar supports and crash beams. We have found during some initial project work we can achieve weight saving of between 15% and 20% or around 0.5kg in a 3kg part.
Q. Are Automotive OEMs serious about increasing the recycled plastics content in cars, or is their R&D focus more on EVs and autonomous vehicles?
A. Albis is seeing that certain automotive OEM’s and their engineers are working hard to develop products with more recycled plastics content into their vehicles, this is happening alongside the EVs and autonomous vehicle developments. Albis is seeing greater acceptance of ECO products from material engineering departments and they are being used as replacement of more traditional prime products in a wider range of applications, some of which would have been unheard of even 5 years ago.
Q. Do you think compounds with recycled plastic content are being accepted?
A. ECO material suppliers still have some ground to make up with component engineers, but our experiences here at Albis are that once we convert one component into using an ECO based material, and it is seen to be acceptable, then project/component engineers are more amiable to the idea of using ECO materials.
Q. How are environmental pressures impacting on ELV recycling?
A. Currently the ELV recyclers have been concentrating on the 'low hanging fruits' of metal recycling and large plastic components such as bumpers and dash boards. But to really make an environmental impact then the 'other' plastics in the vehicle need to be recycled. Cost at the moment is a prohibitive factor and some way must be found to enable the ELV recyclers to be able to recover all plastics from a car.
Q. How is the end-user perception of plastics/polymers changing the recycling climate?
A. At the moment there is limited pressure by the buying public on the Automotive OEM’s, their main focus is on the packaging sector and the perceived damage that plastic packaging is doing to the planet. In future people’s attention may be diverted to the manufacturers of investment goods and more pressure will be brought to bear for the use of ECO materials in their products, but we are not near that position yet.
Q. What does the future hold for the use of ECO polymers in the automotive sector?
A. With new legislation being introduced, the improvements seen recently in the paint removal and separation of current ELV plastic waste and the new acceptance of ECO products by an ever increasing number of project and component Engineers for new designs, the future looks very bright for the use of ECO products in the Automotive industry.
Tony Evans
Business Manager
