Mazda automates recycling technology for vehicle bumpers

01-Apr-09

Mazda Motor Corporation has developed a world-first recycling technology which enhances the process it uses to recycle used bumpers from vehicles into raw plastic resin for use in new vehicle bumpers. The new technology is the first to enable recycling of used bumpers from different manufacturers at the same time. The new technology can recycle all types and makes of bumper, thus eliminating the need for separate collection systems for each automaker's products. It also combines all the recycling stages involved in crushing used bumpers through to reproducing raw materials, into a single automated process. As per the company, the technology automates the processes required to remove unwanted materials (like metal attachments) in collaboration with Satake Corporation, a company in Hiroshima Prefecture, western Japan. Once used bumpers are crushed into pellets, a machine similar to those used to separate contaminants from cereal grains, removes unwanted metal pieces by shaking the pellets and directing airflow over them. Before, these materials needed to be removed using manual labour-intensive methods inhibiting efficiency of recycling. In addition, Mazda's new technology uses the kneading machine, which is said to recycle all bumpers (which vary considerably in terms of composition of polypropylene) at one go. The kneading machine applies a powerful shear force to the crushed bumper pellets, effectively stripping off the paint regardless of the plastic composition or paint properties, and without having to heat the plastic.