Materials manufacturer Covestro is working with partners to promote the recycling of plastics from end-of-life vehicles.

According to a Covestro press release, the automotive industry has recognised the need to recycle plastics for sustainable development in light of growing environmental awareness worldwide and stricter legal regulations. As part of a joint pilot programme initiated by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Covestro and its partners want to work together on recycling solutions for high-quality plastics from end-of-life vehicles (ELVs). The aim is to establish an efficient and sustainable system for recycling plastics in the automotive industry and thus drive sustainable change in the sector. The pilot programme was announced at the Covestro stand at the CHINAPLAS international trade fair, which took place in Shanghai from 23 to 26 April 2024. The partners include leading automotive brands such as Volkswagen and the Chinese manufacturer NIO, the Chinese recycling company GEM and certification bodies such as TÜV Rheinland. As part of the pilot programme, a team of experts is to research methods to recycle used polycarbonate parts such as car headlights into PCR polycarbonate. The recycled material is then to be used for various interior and exterior vehicle applications in order to save resources and reduce CO₂ emissions.
 
At the agreement at the CHINAPLAS trade fair in Shanghai (f.l. ): Lutz Frankholz (TÜV Rheinland Shanghai & Suzhou), Danilo Teobaldi (Principal Chief Engineer and Head of Advanced Technologies, NIO), Guido Naberfeld (Mobility Global Sales & Marketing Head, Engineering Plastics Business Unit, Covestro), Martin Hofmann (Head of the ‘Climate, Energy, Environment and Biodiversity’ cluster at GIZ), Simon Krämer (Head of Sustainability Product in R&D, Volkswagen China) and Qing Guo (Assistant to the President of GEM Green Industry, Wuhan, Innovation Research Institute).
 
Sources:

• Press release Covestro (23.4.2024)
• Photo: © Covestro