Plastic Recycling From Cars

Plastic Recycling From Cars

Plastic is one of the most extensively used materials in the car body. It is gaining popularity among car manufacturers these days. One of the main reasons for this is the fact that lightweight of plastics makes the vehicle more fuel-efficient. Fuel efficiency is an attribute that addresses the economic and environmental concerns. The reasons are that a fuel-efficient vehicle releases a lesser quantity of exhaust and also reduces the consumption of fuel. However, when the car reaches its end of life, it is this plastic that becomes a challenge to dispose of as it is non bio-degradable.

Three of the most used types of plastic in a car include polypropylene, polyurethane, and PVC. Approximately 10% of a car's body weight is constituted by plastic. An auto wrecker can recycle this plastic to generate an income from it.

Let us understand the how plastic is recycled from cars:

When the car is sent for dismantling, the functional parts are detached from it.
After this, the hazardous material is eliminated so that it doesn't pollute the environment.
After this, the body of the car comprising plastic and metallic parts is sent to a crusher.
After they are flattened by the crusher, these parts are sent for shredding.
The shredded plastic and metallic parts come out as a mixture of clumps. These need to be separated.
Metals, plastics, and fibers are separated using different techniques. Some of these methods are floatation, magnetism, size filtering, and manual filtering, etc. These not only separate plastics from metal but also enable grouping different polymer types.
After grouping, the plastics are fed to extruders. These melt the plastic into a liquid which can be formed into shapes.
Some recycling centers shape the plastic as per the requirement of the client. While others produce plastic pellets which are sold in the market. These are used to form products of a variety of shapes.
Depending on the usage the plastic is further processed. For instance, food packaging industry warrants the plastic to pass purity standards. Hence, it goes through extra processing to ensure that there is no contamination. Consequently, it is priced high.

Automobiles are one of the major sources of waste plastic. Plastic is non-biodegradable and can harm the environment. With the growing concerns for environmental protection, plastic recycling has become mandatory. Hence, plastic recycling is a great means to conserve the environment. Recycled plastic finds applications in a host of areas producing a wide range of products.