This process combines Dow's expertise in materials science and Gruppo Fiori's established automotive recycling ecosystem to create a new pathway for end-of-life vehicle materials.
Polyurethane foam is an essential part of automotive interiors. A typical car contains about 28 kg of PU, 10-15 kg of which is in seats. Traditional recycling of vehicles, however, requires disassembly of automotive components, creating cost and complexity for recyclers.
Dow and Gruppo Fiori’s process eliminates this step, producing a simplified recovery for PU waste stream with the purity needed to enable depolymerization (chemical recycling).
Source: Dow
Chefredakteur
The facility can process up to 150,000 tonnes of liquefied waste plastic annually. It produces feedstock for the plastics and chemicals industry. According to the company, processing will be ramped up gradually.
The project is also intended to align recycling processes with the requirements of the forthcoming European Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).
The Implementing Decision also sets out the Commission's mass-balance approach under the SUPD implementing act voted through on 6 February.
The installation integrates Girbau's Sortech system with Picvisa's Ecosort technology. Sortech is designed to automate the feeding, separation and controlled distribution of garments in high-volume industrial environments. The system replaces repetitive manual handling and ensures a consistent material flow to downstream processes. Originally developed for industrial laundry applications, the technology has been adapted to meet the operational requirements of post-consumer textile sorting, where increasing material volumes require scalable and robust processing solutions.
The draft measures, backed by 431 MEPs with 145 against and 76 abstentions, aim to boost the automotive sector's transition to a circular economy by reducing the environmental impact linked to the production and end-of-life treatment of vehicles, and strengthening the sustainability of the car recycling industry in Europe. Specific rules will apply to all vehicles except for special-purpose vehicles, vehicles designed and built for use by the armed forces, civil defence, fire and emergency medical services, and vehicles of historical and special cultural interest.
The transformation costs money. How much cannot be said for sure. In any case, it is already foreseeable that not enough is being invested. The report "Financing the green transition" by the Institute for Ecological Economy Research and Witten/Herdecke University explains why this is the case and how it can be changed.
How is the environment in Europe doing? This is the question that the European Environment Agency (EEA) has asked itself. In its report "Europe's environment 2025", it comes to the conclusion: not so good at all. Many of the targets the EU has set for 2030 are at risk of being missed.
