ELTs: Pyrum both upstream & downstream of Mercedes-Benz

In a form of car-based reincarnation, Mercedes-Benz will soon use waste tyres removed from its vehicles in the production of new cars. German pyrolysis recycling specialist Pyrum Innovations AG has taken the “next step” in its cooperation with the vehicle manufacturer and anticipates recycling several hundred tonnes of used tyres from the Mercedes-Benz Used Parts Centre every year. Pyrolysis oil made from these tyres will be supplied to BASF SE, which will employ it as a raw material for producing plastics used in the manufacture of Mercedes-Benz vehicle components.

“We are very pleased to take the next step in our cooperation with Mercedes-Benz,” comments Pascal Klein, chief executive officer of Pyrum Innovations. “Through the chemical recycling of end-of-life tyres from Mercedes-Benz vehicles, we can jointly reduce the use of fossil resources and ultimately close material cycles.”

The used tyres are delivered from the Mercedes-Benz Used Parts Centre and disposed of at Pyrum’s main plant in Dillingen, Germany. Pyrum began supplying pyrolysis oil to BASF last year. BASF feeds this into its Verbund together with biomethane from agricultural waste at the start of production and uses it to produce a virgin plastic that is certified according to the ‘mass balance process’.

Mercedes-Benz commenced the series production of vehicles equipped with door handles made from this plastic in 2022. At present, the Mercedes-Benz EQE and S-Class are equipped with these door handles, and the S-Class will also receive a crash absorber made from the recycled plastic material. Mercedes-Benz is exploring additional possible applications of this recycled material.