SGL Carbon and Carbon Cleanup form autocomposite recycling partnership
An AI-supported collection system, recycling program and CARB-E tech, already demonstrating CO2 part reduction in early automotive applications, are building recycling scalability.
Share
Automotive waste. Source | Carbon Cleanup
SGL Carbon (Ried im Innkreis, Ort im Innkreis) and composite recycling company (Traun, Austria) are seeking to improve waste management in automotive manufacturing via Carbon Cleanup’s CARB-E (Carbon Eater) recycling technology, which is both scalable and economically viable.
Carbon fiber scraps from automotive production have long been a challenge for waste management — bulky, difficult to recycle and often destined for landfill or incineration. In a partnership that has grown over the past 3 years, SGL Carbon and Carbon Cleanup are returning these materials to the loop.
Using CARB-E, automotive carbon fiber scraps are processed with a near-zero carbon footprint (0.036 kg COâ‚‚ eq. per kilogram). The recycled fibers are then used as reinforcement in injection molding compounds, giving the material a second life while replacing virgin fibers such as glass fiber. Early applications, including a super sports car front hood, has demonstrated a 30% COâ‚‚ reduction per part compared to the original material used.
The partnership began as a “Frontrunnership” to test material recyclability and has since scaled significantly. A dedicated logistics system for the recycling program has been developed, and more than 50 tons of carbon fiber scraps have already been recycled in 2025. Volumes are expected to triple by the end of the year, marking a milestone for industrial-scale circularity.
Within the partnership, waste audits, digitalizing waste and iteration loops, a smart AI-supported collection system has also been developed to track waste from the point it is generated all the way to the final product or even second-life part.
“For the final product, it’s key to know exactly where the waste came from. And for material scientists, that data is gold when it comes to creating the right formulations,” says Jakob Schlosser, CTO Carbon Cleanup. “That’s why our system makes sure every piece of waste is tracked, traceable and connected across the recycling network.”
Related Content
-
Low-cost, efficient CFRP anisogrid lattice structures
CIRA uses patented parallel winding, dry fiber, silicone tooling and resin infusion to cut labor for lightweight, heavily loaded space applications.
-
The potential for thermoplastic composite nacelles
Collins Aerospace draws on global team, decades of experience to demonstrate large, curved AFP and welded structures for the next generation of aircraft.
-
Welding is not bonding
Discussion of the issues in our understanding of thermoplastic composite welded structures and certification of the latest materials and welding technologies for future airframes.