Plastics challenge: Diverting end of life vehicle plastics from landfills

Problem statement

It is estimated that Canada generates between 300 and 400 kt per year of automotive plastic waste, which is a component of Automotive Shredder Residue (ASR), a mix of non-metallic materials coming from end-of-life vehicles.

After drainage of operating fluids and dismantling of reusable parts, ELVs are compressed and shredded. Most of the valuable ferrous and non-ferrous metals are recovered using established separation technologies. The non-metallic components, known as ASR, consist of a mix of plastics, rubbers, textiles and other fibrous materials, glass and metal fragments. As it is a complex feedstock in terms of composition and as it contains several contaminants and toxic substances, there is currently no cost-effective method to valorize ASR. Therefore, most of the ASR is currently sent to landfills, where it is used as a cover material.

Proposed solutions shall target:

* Option 1: The dismantling of plastic components prior to ELVs shredding and their conversion into valuable materials and/or molecules.
Or,
* Option 2: The conversion of ASR into valuable materials and/or molecules.

IMPORTANT: 

1. Proposals that do not lead to end products materials of consistent quality will NOT be considered.
2. Proposals presenting a strategy based on the direct incorporation of ELVs plastics into manufactured products, such as composites, concrete or asphalt, will NOT be considered.
3. Proposals presenting a direct waste-to-energy approach such as co-incineration will NOT be considered.

Please note that proposed innovations must respect all relevant federal, provincial, and municipal environmental regulations such as the Prohibition of Certain Toxic Substances Regulations, 2012 under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.

Desired Outcomes

Essential (Mandatory) outcomes

The proposed solutions must:

Phase 1

1. Describe a complete strategy for the conversion of ELVs plastics into valuable materials and/or molecules.

   Definitions: 

   • ‘Plastics’ refers to all types of polymers (thermoplastics, thermosets and rubbers, filled or unfilled).
   • Example end products ‘materials’ include (but are not limited to) polymers, solid carbons (e.g. carbon black, graphite, etc.) or other valuable materials that can further be used in manufactured products.
   • Example end products ‘molecules’ include valuable chemicals, monomers or fuels.
2. Present a clear pathway to commercialization and industrial implementation;
3. Be scalable;
4. Integrate well with the current processes and infrastructures used for ELVs recycling in Canada;
5. Result in a laboratory-scale or pilot-scale prototype system that:
   • Enables the conversion of at least 40% of ELVs plastics into valuable materials and/or molecules, as demonstrated at the laboratory or pilot-scale;
   • Has the potential to enable the separate recovery of toxic substances (the list can be found at the following address, https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/canadian-environmental-protection-act-registry/factsheet-prohibition-toxic-substances-regulations.html.);
   • Once scaled-up, has the potential to operate at throughputs equivalent to those of ELVs recycling facilities (50 tons / hour and more);
   • Has the potential to bring environmental benefits compared to the current landfilling practice, as demonstrated by early Life Cycle Analysis (LCA);
   • The final Phase 1 report should include the analysis of the cost component of the process and the potential value generated by this technology in order to demonstrate that it is a cost-effective strategy. 

Phase 2

6. Lead to an automated, safe-to-operate, hands-off operation, semi-industrial scale or industrial scale system that:
   • Enables the conversion of at least 60% of ELVs plastics into valuable materials and/or molecules, as demonstrated at the semi-industrial or industrial scale
   • Enables the separate recovery of toxic substances (the list can be found at the following address, https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/canadian-environmental-protection-act-registry/factsheet-prohibition-toxic-substances-regulations.html.), as demonstrated at the semi-industrial or industrial scale;
   • Is capable of operating at throughputs equivalent to those of ELVs recycling facilities (50 tons / hour and more), as demonstrated at the semi-industrial or industrial scale;
   • Brings environmental benefits compared to the current landfilling practice, as demonstrated by Life Cycle Analysis (LCA);
   • The final Phase 2 report should include the analysis of the cost component of the process and the potential value generated by this technology in order to demonstrate that it is a cost-effective strategy. 

Background and Context

It is estimated that Canada generates between 300 and 400 kt per year of automotive plastic waste^{Footnote 1}, which is a component of Automotive Shredder Residue (ASR), a mix of non-metallic materials coming from end-of-life vehicles.

After drainage of operating fluids and dismantling of reusable parts, ELVs are compressed and shredded. The valuable ferrous and non-ferrous metals are recovered using established separation technologies such as magnetic separators and Eddy currents. The non-metallic components, defined as ASR, consist of a mix of plastics, textiles and other fibrous materials, rubbers, glass and metal fragments. The exact composition, physical properties and granulometry of ASR depend mainly on the feedstock, shredding equipment, and post-shredding separation processes. As a starting point, the applicants can work around the information given in References^{Footnote 2Footnote 3}. ASR can contain contaminants such as automotive fluids (motor oils, lubricants, etc.), halogenated products (chlorinated plastics such as polyvinyl chloride – PVC, brominated fire retardants, etc.), heavy metals (mercury, lead, cadmium, etc.) and persistent organic pollutants (POPs).

The heterogeneity of ASR, with varying levels of contamination, moisture content, ash content and calorific value, constitutes a considerable challenge to select or design an appropriate valorization process. Currently, the vast majority of the ASR generated in Canada is used as cover materials in landfills. As usage of plastics in vehicles is expected to grow due to their use as substitution materials for lightweighting and hence fuel consumption and greenhouse gases emissions reduction, there is a need to develop environmentally acceptable and cost-effective strategies for ELVs plastics recycling in Canada.

Current technologies:

Due to a very large diversity in car brands, models and architectures, efficient dismantling of plastic parts at large scale prior to shredding is currently not demonstrated. Only two examples can be found, both slow paced and very selective. The first is the BMW Group Recycling and Dismantling Center (RDC). In that case, each car is taken separately, dried of every fluids, partially manually dismantled and finally crushed and shredded. Only large parts like bumpers car be salvaged before shredding^{Footnote 4}. The other example is the development of car dismantling machines (Kobelco Construction Machinery), still human operated, but able to roughly disassemble cars prior to shredding. The result is faster than manual disassembling, but less accurate and only focuses on large parts separation (bumpers). Those techniques are slow, not accurate and only focus on the separation and do not address the transformation step^{Footnote 5}.

Technologies that have been investigated to valorize the ASR fall into 3 main categories: i) direct incorporation into manufactured products such as composites, concrete or asphalt; ii) incineration with energy recovery; iii) emerging chemical recycling technologies such as pyrolysis or gasification. For a detailed review of those technologies, the applicants can refer to References^{Footnote 2Footnote 3}. Some of those technologies look as promising alternatives for the valorization of ASR. However, several challenges remain such as cost-efficiency and environmental benefits compared to the current landfilling practices.

Overall, this challenge will support domestic action on automotive plastic waste attaining zero plastic waste in Canada.

The National Research Council of Canada (NRC) and Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) are committed to protecting the environment while supporting businesses and Canadians to transition towards a zero plastic waste future. This challenge is highly relevant to the federal government's commitment to move Canada towards a zero plastic waste economy. Plastics are valuable materials and resources because of their unrivalled functionality, durability and low cost. Plastics are used in almost every aspect of Canadians’ daily lives and provide significant economic, environmental and social benefits. However, some of the ways that plastics are currently used and managed negatively impacts Canadian ecosystems and wildlife, and burdens the economy. Canadians throw away over 3 million tons of plastic waste every year. Only 9% of this waste is recycled while the rest ends up in landfills, waste-to-energy facilities or the environment.

Consequently, the Government of Canada has committed to reducing plastic waste and pollution both within Canada and around the world. At the 2018 G7 in Charlevoix, Quebec, Canada launched the Ocean Plastics Charter. This Charter, which has now been endorsed by 25 governments as well as over 60 businesses and organizations worldwide, sets targets and outlines actions to eradicate plastic waste and marine litter. 

The Government of Canada is working with provinces and territories through the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) who have launched a Canada-wide Strategy for Zero Plastic Waste and adopted the first phase of an Action Plan to drive concrete actions across the country. This plan will focus government efforts across a broad range of activities including green procurement and single use plastics.

Multiple grants could result from this Challenge.

Funding of up to $150,000.00 CAD for up to 6 months could be available for any Phase 1 grant resulting from this Challenge.

Estimated number of Phase 1 grants to be awarded: 2

Funding of up to $1,000,000.00 CAD for up to 2 years could be available for any Phase 2 grant resulting from this Challenge. Only eligible businesses that received Phase 1 funding could be considered for Phase 2.

Estimated number of Phase 2 grants to be awarded: 1

This disclosure is made in good faith and does not commit Canada to award any grant for the total approximate funding. Final decisions on the number of Phase 1 and Phase 2 awards will be made by Canada on the basis of factors such as evaluation results, departmental priorities and availability of funds.

Travel:

• Project kick-off meeting at NRC-Boucherville facilities.
• Final project review meeting at NRC-Boucherville facilities

Solution proposals can only be submitted by a small business that meets all of the following criteria:

• for profit
• incorporated in Canada (federally or provincially)
• 499 or fewer full-time equivalent (FTE) employees^{Footnote *}
• research and development activities that take place in Canada
• 50% or more of its annual wages, salaries and fees are currently paid to employees and contractors who spend the majority of their time working in Canada^{Footnote *}
• 50% or more of its FTE employees have Canada as their ordinary place of work^{Footnote *}
• 50% or more of its senior executives (Vice President and above) have Canada as their principal residence^{Footnote *}

The applicant must complete the Challenge Stream Electronic Submission Form with a degree of information sufficient to enable Canada's assessment of the proposal against the criteria and the Evaluation Schema. The information must demonstrate how the proposal meets the criterion.

Part 1: Mandatory Criteria

Proposals must meet all mandatory criteria identified by achieving a "Pass" in order to proceed to Part 2. Proposals that do not meet all mandatory criteria will be deemed non-responsive and given no further consideration.

Mandatory Criteria

(Applicant's proposal must address)

Part 2: Point-Rated Criteria

Proposals must meet the overall minimum pass mark of 50% to be deemed responsive. Proposals that do not achieve the minimum pass mark will be declared non-responsive and given no further consideration.

Point-Rated Criteria

(Applicant's proposal to address)

All incoming questions regarding this specific challenge should be addressed to solutions@canada.ca.

All enquiries must be submitted in writing no later than ten calendar days before the Challenge Notice closing date. Enquiries received after that time may not be answered.

You can also consult the Frequently asked questions about the Innovative Solutions Canada Program.

A glossary is also available.