Toyoda Gosei, a parts supplier in the Toyota constellation, specializing in rubber and plastics, has developed a new way to recycle high-quality plastic from end-of-life vehicles (ELV). It comes in context of growing demand for recycled plastic in the automotive industry, and strengthened environmental regulations. This technology is designed to contribute to a decarbonized, circular economy, and will be implemented in various vehicle models, starting with the Toyota Camry.
It is often difficult to obtain recycled plastic with performance equivalent to that of new material due to impurities or other factors, so waste plastic has generally been burned to recover heat (thermal recycling) or reused for purposes with lower required performance (downcycling).
Now, Toyoda Gosei has developed a recycled plastic with performance equivalent to new material, even with 50 per cent ELV plastic content (polypropylene, in this case). They’ve collaborated with Isono to procure quality raw materials for recycling, and leveraged their original material modification technology, meeting the quality standards for automotive parts for practical application. This technology accelerates horizontal recycling — that is, recycling for reuse in the same kinds of parts — and helps shrink CO2 footprints, Toyoda Gosei says, adding that it’s the first time recycled plastic containing 50 per cent ELV plastic has been used in interior parts such as gloveboxes, which require impact resistance.
Toyoda Gosei aims to expand the range of applicable products, such as those associated with vehicle design, and will continue to improve the attributes of recycled plastic.
