Mercedes-Benz to use tire-derived plastics in vehicle production

STUTTGART, Germany—Tires always have been a safety-critical connection that links vehicles to roadways. Now, thanks to circularity and ingenuity, tires can take on new safety-critical applications in their second life. As plastics.

With support from two key suppliers, Mercedes-Benz A.G. is relying on a process that allows scrap-tire-derived pyrolysis oil to yield virgin-quality plastic. And it hopes to begin using parts made from the plastic material in auto production as early as this year.

To make that happen, Pyrum Innovations A.G. is providing the pyrolysis oil, and BASF combines it with biomethane from agriculture waste.

According to Mercedes-Benz, this is the first time that tire-derived pyrolysis oil has been combined with biomethane. And the result, the companies say, is a sustainable solution that not only reduces the use of fossil fuels and the overall carbon footprint of the resulting plastic, it marks the first time that a recycled plastic has achieved the same characteristics as virgin plastic made from crude oil.

"On our journey to an all-electric future, we are rethinking the composition of all the materials in our vehicles," Markus Schaefer, a member of the Mercedes-Benz Group Board of Management and chief technology officer responsible for development and procurement, said in a statement. "Every action counts when it comes to conserving resources."

Mercedes-Benz anticipates producing both the EQE and S-Class with plastic parts engineered with the pyrolysis oil-biomethane process later this year, emphasizing that the plastic parts meet its high quality standards, particularly in regard to paintability and crash safety.

Both the EQE and S-Class will have bow door handles made from the newly engineered plastic, while the S-Class will have a crash absorber made from the materials as well.

But this, the auto maker said, could be just the start of how the tire-derived pyrolysis oil plastic could be used in manufacturing. It's a big step toward its long-term goals of increasing recycled content in its vehicles by 40 percent before the end of the decade and achieving carbon neutrality across its value chain and in its passenger car fleet by 2039.

"Looking to the future," Mercedes-Benz said, "the aim is to progressively increase the use of this more sustainable recycled material, and also to use chemical recycling in combination with the biomass balance approach for further plastic vehicle parts."