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BMW Car2Car project increases vehicle material recycling rate to 51%
Through the Car2Car research project, the BMW Group and its partners have demonstrated that the proportion of materials from end-of-life vehicles that can be reused in new car manufacturing can be significantly increased.
By implementing advanced processing and sorting technologies, the project raised the ‘Car2Car rate’—the share of materials recovered at a quality sufficient for new automotive applications—from 6% to 51%. The impact was most notable in metals: the recovery rate for steel rose from 1% to 81%, aluminum from 23% to 52%, and copper from 48% to 68%. One key advancement involved an additional sorting step to reduce copper contamination in steel scrap, allowing for the production of high-quality flat steel.
To validate the industrial feasibility of these methods, BMW produced over 100,000 series parts from recovered steel at its Leipzig plant. These parts were installed in vehicles sourced from 433 scrapped cars across 60 different BMW models. While metals showed high potential, the project noted that recycling plastics and glass to the required automotive standards remains a significant technical challenge.
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- [● 3 SOURCES] The Car2Car rate for copper increased from 48% to 68%. www.automotiveworld.com · www.ithome.com · www.bmwblog.com
- [● 3 SOURCES] The Car2Car rate for aluminum increased from 23% to 52%. www.automotiveworld.com · www.ithome.com · www.bmwblog.com
- [● 3 SOURCES] Recycling plastics and glass to automotive quality standards remains a challenge. www.automotiveworld.com · www.ithome.com · www.bmwblog.com
- [● 3 SOURCES] More than 100,000 series parts were produced from recovered steel at the Leipzig plant. www.automotiveworld.com · www.ithome.com · www.bmwblog.com
- [● 3 SOURCES] The Car2Car research project demonstrated that high-quality material loops are technically feasible in the automotive industry. www.automotiveworld.com · www.ithome.com · www.bmwblog.com
- [● 3 SOURCES] Advanced processing and sorting increased the Car2Car rate from 6% to 51%. www.automotiveworld.com · www.ithome.com · www.bmwblog.com
- [● 3 SOURCES] The recovered materials were sourced from 433 end-of-life vehicles covering 60 BMW models. www.automotiveworld.com · www.ithome.com · www.bmwblog.com
- [● 3 SOURCES] The Car2Car rate for steel increased from 1% to 81% using advanced processes. www.automotiveworld.com · www.ithome.com · www.bmwblog.com