Olive Tree-Sourced Auto Parts

Ford engineers from Cologne, Germany work together with COMPOlive, which is a renewable bio-composite manufacturing project. The collaboration sources waste from pruned olive trees in Andalusia, Spain. The collected waste is then converted to a new series of bio-composite fibers.

These are meant to be applicable in the auto industry as the injected molded materials are made from 40% olive tree fibers with 60% recycled polypropylene plastic. All of these have been trialed in simulations and real cars. The tests showed that these materials are durable and boast a lightweight in comparison to the traditional plastic. This partnership could be a progressive step in the industry, optimizing the bio-waste to new revenue streams and efforts.

Image Credit: Ford, COMPOlive