VEHICLE RECYCLING
No longer roadworthy but still ends up in Africa?
Germany must import most of the raw materials it needs – an expensive process that has a negative impact on the environment. Which means everything possible should be done to ensure that the resources that are already in the country are recovered and reused. One opportunity here are old cars: they contain a whole range of materials that can be systematically recycled in the country. We are determined to see this happen. Through political commitment and with our diverse technological solutions.
So many contents, all of them well worth recovering
The automotive sector is being particularly challenged by the green transition and the need to become sustainable. It must not only produce cars that are climate friendly to run but must also ensure that the materials installed in the vehicles can be recovered. Every year, Mercedes, VW, BMW and co. manufacture millions of new cars all around the world. Production processes that require steel, copper and aluminium as well as a wide range of plastics. All of them are materials that should be recovered when the cars reach the end of their useful life.
Modern vehicles are all-rounders. Just like us
Thanks to the services provided across the REMONDIS Group, we are able to offer car manufacturers comprehensive closed-loop and recycling solutions. Some of them have even been developed specifically to support the automotive industry. We operate, for example, plants that are able to recover different kinds of metal and plastics according to type from shredded material.
We also help promote sustainability in the automotive sector by
Developing take-back concepts
Recycling lithium-ion batteries
Supplying recycled raw materials
Recovering precious metals from catalytic converters
Enabling a second use for EV batteries
Stay here old cars! Or we’ll lose your raw materials
We can only sustainably recycle products that we have access to. This is often not the case with the cars that have been taken off the road. Just one in every five cars discarded in Germany is sent for professional recycling. 60% of old cars end up being exported to other countries. This means that huge volumes of valuable raw materials are lost to the local automotive sector. And the variety of different materials in these vehicles is huge as well – as is clearly shown by an analysis that was carried out in 2018 to compare the different kinds of materials used in the old cars of yesteryear (2000) and tomorrow (2030).
Average composition of materials in ELVs (2000 v. 2030)
Source: Prognos calculations based on the data from GEMIS 4.95; manufacturers’ environmental certificates; Restrepo et al. 2017; BDI Klimapfade
Politicians need to take action here: better control functions should be put in place to ensure old cars stay in Germany.
The car of the future. With a built-in return-home function
Car manufacturers have an ever-growing interest in taking back their cars when they reach the end of their useful life so that they have access to their raw material contents. Our sister company TSR specialises in metals and has entered into strategic partnerships with well-known car brands and already supplies them with high-quality recycled raw materials. The goal here is to develop closed-loop, take-back schemes. ELVs (end-of-life vehicles) should be used as a source of raw materials. The recovered raw materials are recycled so they have the highest levels of purity and are then returned to the manufacturers so they can be used to make new cars.
Trend researchers predict that the future will see mobility and car ownership being increasingly decoupled. Cars will move away from being a bought item to becoming a service purchased for a specific period of time. This will enable manufacturers to have permanent access to their vehicles, which will also help promote closed-loop concepts.
Steel and aluminium. A huge carbon-cutting potential
The decarbonisation of the automotive industry is not just happening on the roads but in its production processes as well. For example by using as much green steel and green aluminium content as possible. The REMONDIS Group is able to offer just the right solution for this as well: premium-quality recycled raw materials. They enable steel and aluminium parts to be manufactured that have a much better carbon footprint compared to conventional production methods.
Find out more about our high-quality steel and aluminium recycled products
Right at the top of the waste hierarchy. Making it truly sustainable
According to the waste hierarchy, the best thing to do with discarded products is to reuse them or find another use for them. We have been showing how this can be done with EV batteries at REMONDIS’ Lippe Plant for many years now. This is where we operate the world’s largest second-use battery storage unit. It consists of 1,ooo batteries that can no longer be used in EVs but are still able to store energy. We have incorporated them into a huge storage unit with an overall capacity of 12 megawatts. This second-use battery park is directly connected to the national grid and is perfect for levelling out any dips in energy supply. For example, when the renewable energy systems are unable to produce sufficient electricity. Which makes it doubly sustainable – providing a solution for old EV batteries and helping to promote the energy transition.
Find out more about our second-use battery unit at remondis-lippe-plant.com
When they are permanently out of juice, then it’s off for recycling
Our holistic approach to vehicle recycling also includes lithium-ion batteries – a subject that is becoming ever more important. We offer the whole package here, ensuring that our portfolio of services delivers the very best value. Depending on the state they are in, discarded
lithium-ion batteries are either repaired, reconditioned or dismantled into their individual parts. This system deploys deep-discharge and material-separating technologies with unmatched levels of performance and automation. Which means that the results are also extremely sustainable. All of the recyclable materials contained in the batteries are recovered and returned to battery producers for reuse.
The specialist company BLC is responsible for dismantling lithium-ion batteries. It unites the battery logistics and recycling expertise within the RETHMANN Group.
A film showing how lithium-ion batteries are recycled
This bit is precious. Both the metals and the task
We have collaborated with car manufacturers to develop a sustainable material flow strategy that enables platinum group metals to be recovered from old automotive catalytic converters so that they, in turn, can be used to produce fuel cells. We are, therefore, not only delivering a solution for recovering these materials but also helping to drive forward the green transition towards e-mobility. Upcycling as a means to curb climate change so to speak.
From an old catalytic converter to a new fuel cell
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