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Most studies on the properties and recycling of automotive shredder residue (ASR) have been carried out without fully understanding the composition of the input scrap. Equally important is understanding the type of shredding process, and types of processes utilized for separation of ferrous and non-ferrous metals from the shredded material. The Vehicle Recycling Partnership (VRP) has been conducting a project:“Study of Plastic Material Recovery From Automotive Shredder Residue” [1]. One of the objectives of this VRP project is to determine the relationship between the shredder input and ASR properties. A 1995 Dodge Stratus was dismantled in detail to obtain information necessary for the project, such as material usage in the vehicle [2]. Then, under tightly controlled conditions, 14 late model Chrysler Cirrus and Dodge Stratus automobiles were shredded and processed.

Hand dismantling of certain automotive parts has been an accepted process to remove high value materials, but in large scale recycling this may not be economical. In plastics, a pure non contaminated material stream is critical for maintaining high material values and this means designing plastic parts that can be machine separated. One candidate for separating the plastics in vehicle subsystems such as instrument panels and door trim panels is density separation. In order to better understand what processes are required to develop design requirements for automated plastic separation methods Chrysler and the Vehicle Recycling Partnership have undertaken a major materials separation study with MBA Polymers. In this paper, we describe the material separation methods and the application of these methods to three automotive interior assemblies.

With the increasing demand to improve recyclability of automobiles worldwide the Vehicle Recycling Partnership (VRP) a cooperative effort among Chrysler, Ford and General Motors has been formed. The VRP has been developing preferred practices for improvement of recyclability for future vehicle subsystems. These preferred practices are intended to assist engineers and designers in improving recyclability without impairing the performance of the subsystem. This paper discusses the practices of specific design for recycling of plastic bumper fascia systems and what the designer should consider in developing a design to improve and maximize recyclability.