Sustainable Innovations in Materials may include innovations in—or novel use of—bioplastics, recycled content, and additives for upcycling. Materials innovations often perpetuate the circular economy either by providing a new life for renewable or recycled feedstocks, or by creating circular processes at end-of-life (i.e., recycling, composting, reuse) for products.

Increased use of recycled content in products strengthens the entire recycling process. By establishing demand for recycled content, improvements in collection, sortation, and processing infrastructure can be further encouraged. These innovations also help brands meet recycled content commitments.

Increased use and composting of bioplastic products can help divert food waste from landfill, create nutrient rich soil, and ultimately reduce environmental impact throughout a product’s life cycle.

2022 Leadership in Sustainable Innovation Award Winner: Ford Motor Company - Built Wild: Ford Bronco Sport Becomes First Vehicle to Feature Parts Made of 100% Recycled Ocean Plastic ‘Ghost Gear.’ 

Growing environmental awareness stimulates research to investigate cost-effective, lightweight, sustainable materials to replace existing materials currently used in automotive components. Ford Motor Co. demonstrated within their ecosystem how to best utilize ocean waste materials to make car parts resulting in cost-saving and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Industry First 100% PCR PA 6 based Seat Clip. The process begins with DSM harvesting ocean plastics by collecting spent nylon fishing nets. The plastic is washed of saltwater, dried, and extruded to form small pellets, which are then injection-molded by supplier HellermannTyton into the desired clip shape. The result is a PA6 material with equal strength and durability to its predecessor while offering 10% cost savings, reduced energy consumption, and improved stability in the supply chain.

2022 Leadership in Sustainable Innovation Award Winner: Ford Motor Company - Unlocking the Tiny Secrets of Nature: Nanocellulose Enhanced Flexible PU Foams 

The automotive industry uses polyurethane (PU) systems in seat backs, seat cushions, headrests, armrests, headliners, and Noise Vibration Harshness (NVH) foams. There has been research in incorporating micro and nanofillers into foam systems to improve physical and mechanical properties, especially NVH properties. Additionally, there are increasing environmental and ecological concerns due to petroleum-based chemicals and products. Ford researchers capitalized on their strengths to disrupt the current PU industry and partnered with industry experts (SAPPI, BASF, and Creative Foams) to develop a nanocellulose reinforced PU foam that improves customers’ experience in the vehicle. Introducing nanocellulose reinforcements in PU foams can be challenging from a manufacturing standpoint and increase the cost of components manufactured from such foams. However, the team challenged the current process and discovered the benefits of applying nanocellulose into PU foam.

2022 Sustainable Innovation in Materials Award Winner: Starlinger Viscotec - rPET100: Heat Resistant and Fully Recyclable Material 

rPET100 sheet material for thermoformed packaging is a game-changer for circular packaging solutions: it is designed for recycling, AND it is made from recycled PET. Made from recycled material: it is possible to use 100% recycled content to produce the sheet. This is a huge advantage compared to the status quo. Heat resistant: rPET100 withstands temperatures of up to 100 °C or 212 °F. Fully recyclable: rPET100 material only contains natural-based mineral fillers. There are no other stabilizers or other polymer additives, which would impede recycling in the food packaging loop. Small CO2 footprint: the material has been designed for tray-to-tray recycling while maintaining the highest packaging quality in terms of mechanical strengths and a high-quality optical appearance.

2022 People's Choice Award Winner: Novoloop, Inc. - Oistre™ Thermoplastic Urethane (TPU) 

Oistre™ is the first polyester thermoplastic urethane (TPU) made from advanced chemical recycling. It contains up to 50% content from upcycled post-consumer waste and has up to 46% lower CO2e than conventional TPUs (per 3rd-party screening level LCA). Unlike mechanically recycled TPU, Oistre™ matches the performance characteristics of conventional TPUs. Oistre™ is made using upcycled monomers from Novoloop’s patented ATOD™ process. ATOD™ is an advanced chemical recycling process that transforms post-consumer polyethylene waste into diacid monomers, a very important building block for many polymers. Through Oistre’s production, Novoloop puts plastic waste back to use by keeping it out of landfills and incinerators.

2021 Sustainable Innovation in Materials Award Winner: Ford Motor Company - Composite incorporating biocarbon from coffee manufacturing

This new composite material is polypropylene mixed with biocarbon fillers from coffee chaff. The coffee chaff is a waste byproduct of McDonald's coffee manufacturing process. By replacing talc with coffee chaff, both the material weight and cost are reduced while improving the material's thermal stability. With this innovative material, a waste stream is diverted from landfills, and a superior composite is produced at a 5% cost savings. Additionally, the headlamp housing unit that is the first implementation of this composite material requires 25% less energy to manufacture than existing headlamp housing material does.

2021 People's Choice Award Winner: Ford Otosan - Automotive Fan Shroud

The Automotive Fan Shroud application by Ford Otosan contains 50% recycled PP, sourced from office equipment, and is the first recycled fan shroud application in the Turkish automotive industry. Commonly, fan shrouds are made from a compound consisting of 70% virgin PP and 30% glass fibers. In this recycled fan shroud, however, Ford Otosan uses 50% recycled PP, 20% virgin PP, and 30% glass fibers. With this substitution, 3.1kg of CO2 are saved for each part. This part will be used for more than 6,000 vehicles each year.

2020 Sustainable Innovation in Materials Award Winner: Vartega - Reclaimed and recycled carbon fiber 

Vartega's recycled carbon fiber reinforced nylon 66 satisfies the growing demand for high performance low-cost polymers for vehicle light weighting to improve fuel economy, reduce emissions, and increase electrical vehicle range. Vartega's novel recycling process unlocks the captive supply in the carbon fiber supply chain for use in cost sensitive automotive thermoplastic applications. For every 10% vehicle weight reduction through the use of lightweight thermoplastics, 6 - 7% efficiency is gained. Vartega's technology enables the diversion of thousands of tons of carbon fiber from landfill and 5 - 10 times the amount of thermoplastic scrap that can be upcycled by incorporating recycled carbon fiber.

2019 Leadership in Sustainable Innovation Award Winner: UBQ Materials - Advanced materials company that transforms unsorted household waste destined to landfills.

UBQ Materials is a climate tech developer of advanced materials that converts unsorted landfill-destined waste – organics like food and dirty diapers together with plastic, cardboard and packaging – into UBQ™, a sustainable alternative to oil-based resins and other conventional raw materials. The climate-positive and bio-based thermoplastic has thousands of applications and is incorporated seamlessly into standard manufacturing processes, both on its own and as an additive. A certified B Corp, UBQ Materials empowers industries to offset the carbon footprints of their end products and preserve finite resources without compromising on profitability or material performance. This gives manufacturers a commercially viable way to operate more sustainably and transition to a truly circular economy.

2019 Sustainable Innovation in Materials Award Winner: Dell - Latitude 5000 Notebook

Dell uses 30% PCR and 20% PIR Carbon fiber compounded together into a notebook computer LCD cover (top cover) for their Latitude 5000 series notebooks. By 2019, this has prevented over 2 million lbs. of carbon fiber from entering the landfill since they started shipping this material in 2016. Their Latitude notebooks are used in the corporate market segment and have the toughest durability requirements. This product meets all of those durability requirements and provides light weight parts due to the carbon fiber.