Thanks to plastic components, weight of automobiles will reduce 50 percent by 2020; every 20 % weight reduction ensures 10-12 gram less carbon dioxide emission per kilometer, Reha Gur, Head of PAGDER.
While the efforts intensify on the global warming across the world, particularly in the countries where vehicle traffic is intensive makes up 77 percent of the total carbon emission. Reha Gur, Chairman of the Turkish Plastic Industry Foundation (PAGDER), in his assessment said the entire world looks for to increase use of plastic components in automobiles to lower carbon emission and save fuel. He continued; “The size of saving to be gained is very big. Every country which acts reasonable makes their best to spread plastic materials primarily in mobility sector and then in other sectors. So that currently being 15 percent of the total weight of the vehicles would increase quickly, and from the 2020s the weight of the mobility vehicles will decrease and reached half of today’s weight.” The scientific studies show that plastic would emerge to forefront with regard to the study conducted by the American Chemical Society, Reha Gur pointed out currently plastic is used up to 15 percent part of the vehicles, this firstly would raise by 20 percent, from 2020s accelerating quickly up to 50 percent. “One of the basic reasons of this is that R & D studies carried out directed towards use of plastics in the main components including chassis that consists of the main weight of the vehicle. Even showing variation according to vehicle types, over 1000 plastic components are used in the contemporary vehicles. In automobiles, almost the entire part of passenger section comprised of the plastic materials. For example, making seat filling material with plastic based foams reduces weight 10 kg per vehicle,” he said.
Reduction of every 20 kg means 10-12 gr less emission per kilometer
Stating that the automotive sector manages intensive R & D and innovation studies, Reha Gur highlighted those efforts have intensified in Turkey as well. He said; “If today’s passenger cars – which weight mostly 1,3 and 1,4 tons – were produced by equal materials instead of plastic materials the vehicles would weight 300 kg heavier than plastic ones. In the wake of plastic materials are used instead of heavy materials, 0,5 liters fuel saving is gained in every 100 kilometer. As for the basic news, in every 20 percent weight reduction in cars makes 10-12 gr carbon emission reduction per kilometer.” Highlighting the advantage of plastic in vehicles instead of traditional materials Gur said, “Plastic does not only provide emission reduction during driving, also plastics make up positive effect for the carbon emission during their production process.”
EU and U.S. have focused on lowering vehicle weight and more efficient combustion
The EU and the US is gradually increasing their standards towards carbon emission control, reducing weight are the two important issues of the automotive sector, Gur said. Plastic materials are to ensure reduction of the vehicle weight. The other issue is more efficient combustion. PAGDER Chairman Reha Gur said there were a reality in the production of plastic materials less water and energy are consumed than equal ones and less carbon emission happens. Plastic materials are light. Saying weight for carrying and other processes mean more energy consumption, more carbon emission. The plastic materials can be recycled more and more. When you consider this and similar reasons, if you want to adopt an environmental approach you should use plastic materials. Last but not least, you must separate them in their own source without leaving environment or throwing away. This is the most environmental attitude, he concluded.