Recycling and upcycling aluminium waste from drinks cans, bottle tops and end-of-life vehicles could reduce carbon emissions by up to a quarter.

The Reality aluminium project, co-funded by Innovate UK and in partnership with Brunel University, is a key part of Jaguar Land Rover’s Destination Zero mission to reduce carbon emissions. Using the recycled aluminium parts has the potential to reduce alloy production emissions by up to 26 per cent compared to the current automotive grade, helping Jaguar Land Rover further close the loop on its manufacturing and use of raw materials.

Aluminium is one of the most widely recycled materials in the world and can be melted down and reformed repeatedly without losing quality. Post-consumer recycled aluminium appears in everyday goods such as drinks cans, aerosols, foil food trays and bottle tops but is not widely used for high-end applications such as automotive manufacturing. Nearly 75 per cent of all aluminium produced in the US and EU is still in use today while the creation of recycled aluminium uses around 90 per cent less energy than raw material production.

By recovering the high-quality automotive-grade aluminium used to manufacture vehicles, Jaguar Land Rover can re-use the premium properties as part of a blend, reducing the need for virgin aluminium in vehicle production.

Gaëlle Guillaume, lead project manager for Reality Jaguar Land Rover, said: “As we move into an autonomous, connected and electrified future, with the potential of shared fleets being de-commissioned en masse, it could allow Jaguar Land Rover to engineer this closed loop recycling alloy into tight production schedules to further improve efficiency and environmental benefits.”

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