
Ford Motor Co. in Dearborn is working on using 7 million tons of waste from pruned olive trees to make auto parts.
Ford engineers in Cologne, Italy, have launched a research project to explore how olive waste could be re-purposed to create auto part prototypes. Called the COMPOlive project, it is designed to demonstrate the use of materials made from recycled and renewable materials in auto parts.
The engineers found the parts to be durable and believe research like this could enable lighter weight parts that reduce the amount of plastic used in vehicles, reduce the carbon footprint of auto parts, and bring the company closer to its goal of using more recycled and renewable content in its vehicles.
For the trial, the waste materials were sourced from olive groves in Andalusia, Spain, the region with the highest production of olive oil in the world. The prototype parts consisted of 40 percent olive tree fibers and 60 percent recycled polypropylene plastic, the substance was heated, and injection molded into the shape of the selected part.
Ford has a legacy of research in sustainable materials dating back to its founder, Henry Ford, some of which eventually made it into Ford vehicles. Since 1903, the uses have included soybean-based foam seats and headrests, post-consumer recycled materials — including yogurt cups — in the Ford Mustang Mach-E frunk insert, and recycled ocean plastic in wiring harness clips in Ford Bronco Sport.