{"id":19813,"date":"2019-01-05T13:46:52","date_gmt":"2019-01-05T10:16:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/?p=19813"},"modified":"2024-08-19T16:16:06","modified_gmt":"2024-08-19T11:46:06","slug":"bumper-crop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/bumper-crop\/","title":{"rendered":"Bumper Crop"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"sfitemRichText\" data-sf-field=\"Summary\" data-sf-ftype=\"LongText\">\n<p>Recyclers know how to remove bumpers from end-of-life vehicles and process them into feedstock. High costs, low value, and little demand for postconsumer material are what keep this market from growing, they say.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sfitemRichText\" data-sf-field=\"Content\" data-sf-ftype=\"LongText\"><strong>September\/October 2017<\/strong><strong><br \/>\nRecyclers know how to remove bumpers from end-of-life vehicles and process them into feedstock. High costs, low value, and little demand for postconsumer material are what keep this market from growing, they say.<\/strong><strong>by Rachel H. Pollack<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" title=\"Auto-Bumpers\" src=\"https:\/\/www.scrap.org\/images\/default-source\/default-album\/auto-bumpers.jpg?sfvrsn=2\" alt=\"Auto-Bumpers\" data-displaymode=\"Original\" \/>In an industrial park on the outskirts of Baltimore, four employees of LKQ Corp. (Chicago) stand on a loading dock and unload and sort through a 53-foot trailer load of automobile bumpers. They set aside a few of the less-damaged ones for refurbishment, placing most of them next to a workbench in the middle of the room to be decontaminated.<\/p>\n<p>Two employees at that workbench use hand-held air saws and other tools to remove metal fasteners and other contaminants from each bumper. Another employee feeds the decontaminated bumpers, one by one, into a granulator. He, too, has the necessary tools to remove any overlooked contamination from a bumper before it gets processed. The 150-hp granulator can process about 165 bumpers, or 1,400 pounds, an hour. Even though LKQ\u2019s primary goal is refurbishing the repairable bumpers, 85 percent of the bumpers it handles\u2014\u06f1\u066b\u06f8\u06f7 million bumpers a year\u2014get granulated and sold to plastics recyclers.<\/p>\n<p>Bumpers are the low-hanging fruit of automotive plastics. Most auto bumpers (technically, bumper covers) are made from one type of resin, thermoplastic olefin, that manufacturers can use to make new bumpers and other products, and you don\u2019t need special skills or tools to remove them from a car. But metal recycling yards and auto dismantlers say they don\u2019t routinely pull them off and recycle them. It\u2019s the story of all commercial recycling in a nutshell, says<br \/>\nJonathan Cohen, president of Generated Materials Recovery (Phoenix) and former chair of ISRI\u2019s Plastics Division. \u201cWhen the cost for processing a material is higher than the revenue generated from the sale of that commodity, you\u2019re in the red.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Labor, storage, processing, and transportation costs exceed the value they can get for the bumpers from plastics processors or consumers, recyclers say. A healthy postindustrial TPO supply and low virgin resin prices are factors as well. TPO is a derivative of polypropylene combined with rubber, so its price ties into the virgin PP price, says Jim Porter, president and owner of Recycled Materials (Atlanta), which processes TPO. Historically, recycled TPO has sold for roughly 30 to 40 percent less than virgin TPO, says Scott Melton, president of ACI Plastics (Flint, Mich.), so if virgin TPO is selling for a dollar a pound, for example, processors must spend less than 60 or 70 cents a pound to source the material, prepare it for recycling, process it, and repelletize it, which is a tall order. \u201cWhen PP prices are high, there\u2019s more value, it\u2019s easy to recycle [TPO],\u201d says Cohen, whose company handles an estimated 80,000 pounds of baled TPO a month. \u201cWhen PP prices are low or sorting costs are high, the math just doesn\u2019t work.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Collection Barriers<\/p>\n<p>When you pull the bumpers off a car, TPO plastic is not the only thing you\u2019ll get. \u201cWe request [that suppliers] remove the grill, headlights, license plates, and other contaminants. Inevitably you have to watch out for clips, nuts, bolts, things of that nature,\u201d Porter says. ISRI added an auto bumper plastics specification to the\u00a0<em>Scrap Specifications Circular<\/em>\u00a0last year that states \u201ceverything attached to the bumper cover should be removed before baling,\u201d specifying head lamps, tail lamps, grills, emblems, rub strips, and reflectors. \u201cContamination should be limited to small metal parts such as clips, bolts, and screws,\u201d the spec states.<\/p>\n<p>Many small metal clips hold each bumper in place. Plastics processors will either pay less for loads that contain them or just not accept that material, recyclers say. Workers must remove the clips by hand, but that preprocessing is essential, Cohen says, because the metal can damage a granulator and ruin the load of TPO. With its six bumper-sorting facilities in North America both removing contaminants and granulating the bumpers, LKQ must perform its own quality control, says Mario Maselli, director of plastic remanufacturing. \u201cWe mark every Gaylord [of regrind] with the grinder\u2019s initials,\u201d he says, to track performance.<\/p>\n<p>A small proportion of auto bumpers are urethane\u2014less than 3 percent, Maselli estimates, typically from imported European cars. Cohen cautions that urethane is \u201clike poison\u2014it can ruin a load of TPO, thus those bumpers must be kept out of the supply.\u201d Fortunately, it\u2019s easy to spot the urethane bumpers, Porter says. \u201cThey\u2019re much heavier [and] a different color on the inside, where it\u2019s not painted.\u201d The unpainted side of urethane bumpers is yellow or tan, whereas TPO bumpers are dark gray to black.<\/p>\n<p>The labor cost of pulling, sorting, and decontaminating bumpers and the value of TPO don\u2019t justify removing bumpers from ELVs, says Neil Samahon, CEO of Metro Recycling (Griffith, Ind.), which has both auto dismantling and recycling operations. \u201cWith the difficulty we\u2019re having in hiring personnel [and] staffing facilities,\u201d it\u2019s tough to dedicate staff to a task with little return on investment, he says. \u201cAt this point, we\u2019ve opted to set [the idea] aside and revisit it another day, when the economics and dynamics of it change.\u201d Other recyclers and dismantlers report coming to the same conclusion.<\/p>\n<p>Samahon notes one other factor that discourages TPO recycling from ELVs. Shredder yards set per-ton prices for car hulks assuming a certain percentage of the hulk is not metallic. Removing up to 20 pounds of bumper per car lowers a shipment\u2019s weight and thus its value. Currently, the value of those pounds while on a car hulk is greater than the value of the pounds of TPO bumpers sold separately to a plastics recycler, he says. One source says it\u2019s a 100-percent difference\u2014the bumpers are worth up to twice as much on the car as they are sold separately.<\/p>\n<p>PADNOS (Holland, Mich.) might be unique in that it has made and will continue to make an effort to remove TPO bumpers from ELVs despite the current low return on investment. Removal is part of its depollution and part-removal process prior to shredding. It\u2019s challenging to remove them efficiently, and it\u2019s even more of a challenge to make a margin on the material with today\u2019s historically low resin pricing, says Randy Knibbe, plastics division director. \u201cIt\u2019s labor-intensive, and if you do a cost study, there\u2019s a good chance you\u2019re losing money by doing it in current market conditions,\u201d he says. But \u201cthe Padnos family encourages us to do whatever we can to recycle, as long as it makes sense and is sustainable in the long term,\u201d he explains. And that means working on removing and recycling these bumpers to keep them out of the landfill. \u201cIt\u2019s the personal mission of [Chairman] Jeff Padnos to do that,\u201d Knibbe says, based on \u201cboth the long-term environmental return and the financial return.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe way we see it,\u201d he adds, \u201cthere will be continued growth in the amount of plastic being used on and in cars. Resin pricing will eventually increase, the cost to dispose of auto shredder [residue] will also rise, regulations are destined to change, and it will make even more sense to remove plastics, including bumper fascias, prior to shredding. We are going to continue our efforts to be ahead of the curve.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Very few of the bumpers LKQ takes in come from the auto salvage side of the company, Maselli says. \u201cThe cost of removing the metal is going to outweigh the value,\u201d even with the greater value it gets for refurbishing some of them, he says. Instead, the company collects bumpers from auto body shops and collision centers as it delivers its aftermarket auto parts and refurbished bumpers. Those businesses already have been paid for removing and replacing the bumpers by the insurance claim, reducing the cost for recyclers who have tapped this supply source.<\/p>\n<p>Metalpro (Springfield, Va.) has been recycling bumpers it collects from collision centers and body shops in parts of Virginia and Maryland for about 10 years. Before it started recycling them, it was hauling the bumpers to the landfill for a fee, says Bob Ward, Metalpro\u2019s president and owner. It still charges the fee, but around 2007 it purchased a baler specifically for bumpers and started baling them; now it sells one trailerload a month\u2014about 20 tons\u2014to plastics recyclers. \u201cIt made sense to sort, bale, and haul it [to a buyer] instead of dumping it\u201d for both economic and environmental reasons, Ward says. \u201cIf we could break even, it was worth exploring.\u201d Even so, collections don\u2019t always go smoothly, he notes. In the collection containers, \u201cwe get wheel well liners, windshield washer fluid tanks, hub caps\u2014we want bumper covers, and that\u2019s it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Even if the price of TPO were to rise, dismantlers and recyclers point out a few other factors that discourage bumper recycling. With their shape and bulk, you need substantial storage space to accumulate 5,000 bumpers for a load. This is more of a barrier for auto dismantlers, who often don\u2019t have balers, which recyclers can use to store the material more efficiently. And high transportation costs mean postconsumer material rarely travels very far. \u201cOutside 600 miles of the plant, it doesn\u2019t make sense to go get it,\u201d ACI\u2019s Melton says. For Recycled Materials, the limit is just 150 miles, Porter says. In contrast, they source postindustrial TPO, which they say is worth three to four times more than postconsumer, from around the country. Because LKQ wants to refurbish its bumpers, it doesn\u2019t bale its supply. Transportation is \u201ca huge part of our costs,\u201d Maselli says. \u201cWe make sure the truck is properly loaded to get 700-800 bumpers in a 53-foot trailer, or the freight will kill us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Postindustrial Sources<\/p>\n<p>Also moderating interest in TPO from ELV bumpers is the healthy supply of postindustrial material. The majority of the million-plus pounds of TPO that PADNOS handles annually comes from postindustrial sources in Indiana, Michigan, and western Ontario, Knibbe says. The suppliers are largely original equipment manufacturers, Tier 1 and Tier 2 manufacturers of injection-molded auto parts and auto assemblers, who recycle off-spec parts, obsolete inventory, and spare parts. Many interior and exterior car parts are made from TPO, he notes, but bumpers are \u201ceasily the biggest volume, just by pounds, because it\u2019s a big part.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Postindustrial material is substantially cleaner and easier to access than ELV bumpers, say Knibbe and other plastics processors. Some of it isn\u2019t painted and doesn\u2019t have attachments, so it can go right into the granulator. Of the 1 million pounds of TPO ACI processes each month, less than 100,000 pounds is postconsumer material, Melton says.<\/p>\n<p>Circumstances can change, however, so these processors don\u2019t rule out taking more postconsumer supply in the future. \u201cWhen there isn\u2019t enough supply and we need to fill orders, when we need raw material, we\u2019ll work even harder to get it,\u201d Knibbe says. If there\u2019s a lot of [postindustrial] supply, it logically makes more sense to use that, and that\u2019s where we\u2019re seeing the market at right now.\u201d At ACI, on the other hand, \u201cwe just started having discussions again of where supply lines are\u201d for postconsumer, Melton says. \u201cWe need more material, and postindustrial is out there,\u201d but much of it is already being collected, he says. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to talk to people we worked with years ago, to see if they\u2019re still collecting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Processing the Plastic<\/p>\n<p>Recyclers vary in the extent of processing they do to the recovered TPO. Some simply grind the material into flake; others use various processes to remove paint and other contaminants such as metal foil. The flake gets extruded and pelletized to create a feedstock that can go into new products.<\/p>\n<p>Is the paint a problem? It depends on the end market, processors say. \u201cI think there\u2019s a perception that the paint is a contaminant more than it is,\u201d Recycled Materials\u2019 Porter says. His company granulates about 150,000 pounds of TPO a month, but it does not remove the paint. To a great extent, \u201cthe paint either gets filtered out or dissolves\u201d when the TPO is melted for extrusion, he says, \u201cor it\u2019s not going to be a problem\u201d for the final product being produced by his consumers, although it might be for other downstream applications. Maselli suspects the company buying LKQ\u2019s TPO flake is not removing the paint, either.<\/p>\n<p>For recycled TPO that matches the characteristics of virgin TPO, however, processors say paint removal is essential\u2014and difficult. Exterior vehicle paint has become much more durable, Knibbe says. A car \u201ccan be outdoors in the sun for 10 years and it won\u2019t fade; you can hit a pole at a gas station, and it hardly cracks. It\u2019s great for car owners, not so great for recycling painted bumpers.\u201d Paint removal is one of the biggest challenges to recycling postconsumer material, he says.<\/p>\n<p>Even a small amount of residual paint will prevent new paint from adhering to parts made from recycled TPO, says Susan Kozora, director of advanced engineering at auto parts maker IAC Group (Southfield, Mich.), who spoke about TPO recycling at the 2017 ISRI convention. She cautions, however, that some methods for removing paint can affect performance characteristics such as impact resistance. Chemical processes result in more thorough paint removal, but they\u2019re expensive, slow, likely to affect the physical properties, and can create environmental issues, Knibbe says. Physical processes are slow, too, but they better preserve the physical properties, Kozora says. In her experience, a combination of heat and chemicals works best. No process removes 100 percent of the paint, Knibbe says, but you can achieve 99.5- to 99.9-percent removal.<\/p>\n<p>Many market participants point to ACI as a company that successfully produces recycled TPO that can meet virgin TPO standards. It uses a patented, water-based process for paint removal with a \u201csmall amount of a chemical,\u201d Melton says, one of only two companies using such a process in the United States. It certifies the physical characteristics of each batch of recycled TPO pellet it sells, with most of the material going to Tier 1 automotive suppliers. Geo-Tech Polymers (Waverly, Ohio) also removes paint from TPO. Its process is \u201cnot using friction, it\u2019s using FDA-approved chemicals\u201d so the \u201cTPO is cleaning itself,\u201d says CEO Ron Whaley. \u201cWe designed our own \u2018Maytag washer\u2019 and our own \u2018Tide detergent\u2019 for each application,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this year, the Plastics Industry Association (Washington, D.C.) researched the physical properties of recycled TPO from ELVs. The researchers sent ELV bumpers\u2014collected at an auto scrapyard\u2014to a plastics processor, which granulated them, removed the paint, and melted, extruded, and pelletized the material. They then submitted the material to auto manufacturers to see if 100-percent-recycled material meets their specs without any further treatment. \u201cIt only missed the mark on a couple of physical properties\u201d out of more than a dozen measured, says Kim Holmes, vice president of sustainability, \u201cwhich was very encouraging.\u201d As is, the material \u201ccould be used for other applications,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>The association is working with ISRI on phase II of its research, which will look at blends of recycled and virgin material as well as modifiers to achieve even better results. It also will test the properties of TPO that\u2019s extruded and pelletized without a separate paint-removal process.<\/p>\n<p>Kozora did research and testing on postconsumer recycled TPO for a company she worked for prior to joining IAC Group. \u201cWe had very good success using 15-percent recycled and 85-percent virgin\u201d TPO in a blend that could meet original equipment manufacturer specifications, she says, including impact resistance and paint adhesion. ACI\u2019s Melton says his customers typically create a blend with 15 to 30 percent recycled material. ACI and Geo-Tech do much or all of their TPO processing on a tolling basis, creating products that meet specific customers\u2019 specifications. \u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s any technical barrier today\u201d to using recycled TPO plastics, Whaley says. \u201cThe technology exists to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In addition to specific performance characteristics, consistency and low prices are essential for North American consumers, processors say. \u201cMany molders today are looking for the cost savings they can find with recycled,\u201d Melton says, plus \u201cconsistency in material and consistency in supply. If both are covered, they will use recycled.\u201d Porter agrees that \u201cconsistency, dependability, [and a] reasonable price\u201d are what consumers want. The same goes for his suppliers, he notes. \u201cWe\u2019re generally looking for consistency. We want to know people are bringing in [the] same amount each week or month as opposed to just occasionally.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Finding Markets<\/p>\n<p>Both domestic and export markets existed for TPO bumpers, GMR\u2019s Cohen says. East and West coast suppliers typically sold material to China; Midwest sellers were more likely to find domestic buyers. As of late August, however, the export market is dead, he says. \u201cIt\u2019s as quiet and cold as any point in last 15 years. \u2026 No one in China is buying, almost literally, or they\u2019re in the last throes of buying. \u2026 The whole ecosystem is almost collapsing, there\u2019s so much uncertainty.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Knibbe agrees with that assessment. Postindustrial material has always found domestic buyers, he says, but China used to buy \u201ca fair amount\u201d of postconsumer material. This slowed during its Green Fence enforcement effort several years ago and again earlier this year, under National Sword. With China poised to implement a ban on imports of some grades of scrap plastics, Cohen is not sure TPO<br \/>\nbumpers will make the cut. If export market demand declines, the market in North America \u201cwill have a surplus of supply and limited demand, which will make the economics even more challenging,\u201d he says. Even now, Knibbe says, with the Chinese slowdown in buying, low market values, and \u201cnew production scrap at unprecedented levels, there\u2019s a huge supply of [recycled] TPO.\u201d And with prime material at historically low prices, molders that have been on the fence about whether to use recycled materials are many times choosing prime, he says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLack of markets is my greatest concern right now,\u201d Metalpro\u2019s Ward says. \u201cWe have been able to find legitimate consumers, but \u2026 presumably, with the export market not being there, that further limits markets. We very rarely exported, but at least that\u2019s been an option.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>LKQ\u2019s Maselli also says finding markets has been difficult. As recently as two years ago, \u201cpeople were fighting over regrind, the price was going up,\u201d he says. \u201cWe had no issues selling the product.\u201d About 18 months ago, however, prices started to decline, he notes. In the past six months demand has been getting better, but \u201cthe past year hasn\u2019t been easy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>PADNOS\u2019 recycled TPO stays close to home. \u201cOurs typically goes back to the molders\u201d of auto parts who often were the source of the material, Knibbe says, \u201cunless there\u2019s extra supply. Then we might sell to a compounder\u201d who will most likely sell the material to a different molder.<\/p>\n<p>Recycling TPO in a closed loop back into auto bumpers is perhaps the highest, best use for the material, but it\u2019s not the only use. LKQ\u2019s Maselli believes some of his material was used as filler in artificial turf fields; several processors mention septic tanks. Trash cans and plastic pallets are other uses, Porter says. \u201cI\u2019d love to find new applications for it,\u201d he adds. \u201cWe\u2019re aware of a handful of buyers, but we\u2019d love to find more end users. \u2026 We\u2019d welcome somebody to research it and find new applications.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Finding new end markets is the goal of phase II of PLASTICS\u2019 research, which will run in tandem with the collaboration with ISRI, Holmes says. Documenting the material\u2019s physical properties in different concentrations and blends is a top priority for several PLASTICS demonstration projects, she notes. \u201cIdeally, we\u2019d be able to build a library of physical properties of different recycling streams so [companies] could \u2026 evaluate this as a feedstock for manufacturing,\u201d she says. \u201cIf we can fill those information gaps and accelerate that process for them, we can unlock those opportunities more quickly than any company could do on its own.\u201d She hopes that certain proportions of TPO will work as a modifier in PP to raise its impact resistance, for example, broadening the potential applications to \u201cunderground storage tanks, drain pipe, anything where a PP application would be good but it needs a little more strength.\u201d If research can \u201cpiece together all the dots in the value chain, we can begin to underscore the opportunities for the material,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>The next step is testing recycled TPO in specific end markets and then getting \u201csome commitment from people to use the material,\u201d Holmes says. To date, one compounder is looking at using recycled TPO for a noncritical part for an OEM; a \u201cdurable goods and recreational vehicle manufacturer\u201d also has expressed interest, she says.<\/p>\n<p>Once the researchers develop data sheets of the physical properties and performance of recycled TPO, Holmes says, \u201cwe\u2019ll shop that information around, go to manufacturers and say \u2026 can you consider using this material, and would you like a sample?\u201d At that point, she hopes ISRI members will volunteer to provide ELV bumpers as sample material. \u201cThe benefit for scrapyards participating is that they\u2019ll get to cost out how recovery works at their facility and build a relationship with a [plastics] recycler and [potential] customers, building the foundation of a system that can quickly scale up across the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Phase I of the research resulted in an economic pro forma auto recyclers and salvage yards can use to model potential scenarios for ELV bumper recycling, Holmes says. PLASTICS plans to make that pro forma tool available on its website by October. The dynamic spreadsheet allows a yard to enter data points for a few variables, such as how many cars it processes a year, average hourly labor costs, the time it takes to remove a bumper, the costs to ship, and so on. \u201cIf an auto yard can get prices from plastics recyclers and can estimate shipping costs,\u201d the form \u201ccalculates what the per-pound cost or profit can be,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI really believe that you cannot have a healthy recycling system without the demand piece,\u201d Holmes says. \u201cWe represent the converters and brand owners. That\u2019s where we\u2019re best positioned to effect change. Working with ISRI\u2014those aggregating material, doing recovery work\u2014we can leverage our competencies and address those multiple issues.\u201d She also hopes to work with ISRI to develop a directory of recyclers who process TPO bumpers, from granulating to paint removal to extrusion and pelletizing. \u201cIf we\u2019re able to turn on the valve and get demand going for the material, they\u2019re positioned to jump right into that opportunity,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>Supply, processing, and transportation barriers are \u201ceasily overcome when you have the demand,\u201d Geo-Tech\u2019s Whaley says. \u201cPeople will make the supply side work\u201d if the demand is there. \u201cThey always do, no matter how difficult\u201d the challenges appear to be.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Rachel H. Pollack is editor-in-chief of\u00a0<em>Scrap<\/em><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Bumper Design for Recycling Concerns<\/p>\n<p>Recyclers are quick to note how vehicle bumper designs impede recycling\u2014and designs are getting worse from a DFR standpoint, not better, they say.<\/p>\n<p>Start with the metal clips that hold the bumper to the vehicle. Recyclers must remove them by hand to prepare the bumpers for processing, a process that takes several minutes per bumper. Better design for disassembly would speed that process, says Susan Kozora, director of advanced engineering at IAC Group (Southfield, Mich.). \u201cThe less labor you have to put into removal, the more likely someone is going to recover it,\u201d she says. The same idea applies to the other TPO parts inside the vehicle, such as the door panel and different trim pieces. Making vehicles easier and more cost-effective to disassemble is \u201cone of the bigger keys\u201d to getting more TPO recycled, she says.<\/p>\n<p>If some metal bumper clips slip through the cracks, plastics processors can use magnets to detect them in the flake. Carmakers are moving from metal clips to acetate or nylon ones, however, which \u201cmakes recycling very difficult,\u201d says Ron Whaley, CEO of Geo-Tech Polymers (Waverly, Ohio). \u201cYou can\u2019t detect acetate on a large scale,\u201d he says. He understands the rationale for the change\u2014it\u2019s cheaper, and it helps reduce vehicle weight to increase gas mileage. \u201cBut the engineers are not really thinking about the end of life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Randy Knibbe, plastics division director of PADNOS (Holland, Mich.), worries about chrome-plated emblems on front grilles, which sometimes are molded in one piece with bumpers, and decorative chrome strips. \u201cIt\u2019s very thin plating, but it is metallic, and it\u2019s next to impossible to get off,\u201d he says, short of cutting it off. \u201cIf you did pull it off, the residual adhesive would be there, which is also a big challenge.\u201d Even if China continues to accept postconsumer TPO, with the increased scrutiny of contaminants, they\u2019re not going to want anything metallized or plated, he points out.<\/p>\n<p>Other vehicle design elements that make bumpers \u201cchallenging right now,\u201d Knibbe says, are running lights with LED bulbs, glass, and copper wire harnesses. \u201cIt used to be just a big old plain bumper,\u201d he says. But with \u201cmodern engineering [and] fancy bling, today it\u2019s harder to recycle than ever.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Better design for recycling would result in automakers finding \u201cways to design things that have the fancy stuff consumers want, but with resins compatible to recycle and reuse them,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Recyclers know how to remove bumpers from end-of-life vehicles and process them into feedstock. High costs, low value, and little demand for postconsumer material are what keep this market from growing, they say. September\/October 2017 Recyclers know how to remove bumpers from end-of-life vehicles and process them into feedstock. High costs, low value, and little&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19811,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[494],"tags":[130,124,98,129,128,126,127,125,123,122,112,132,131,117,116,115,89,91,97,133,80,96],"class_list":["post-19813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-automotive-bumper","tag-automotive-scrap","tag-battery-flake","tag-bumper-car","tag-bumper-garnule","tag-bumper-recycled","tag-bumper-recycling","tag-bumper-scrap","tag-car-recycled","tag-car-scrap","tag-china-scarp","tag-dashboard-granule","tag-dashboard-recycling","tag-iran-granule","tag-iran-plastic","tag-iran-scrap","tag-plastic","tag-plastic-recycled","tag-pp-battery","tag-pp-compound","tag-pp-granule","tag-pp-recycled"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19813","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19813"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19813\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19815,"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19813\/revisions\/19815"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tarhabpolymer.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}