Benchmarking Against European Union (EU) ELV Regulations! Ruifeng Leads the Development of a Resource Recycling Commercial System for Semiconductor Waste Plastics in Automotive Applications

Recently, four Japanese companies led by Japanese financial giant Mizuho Bank launched a joint R&D initiative to implement a business model for the resource recycling of plastics: regenerating waste plastics generated by the semiconductor industry into materials for automobile manufacturing. The project is being implemented on Japan’s Kyushu island, a traditional hub of the automotive industry where companies such as TSMC are also continuing to increase investment in the semiconductor sector.

Project consortium members

The consortium for this collaboration is formed by Mizuho Bank, resource recycling company Ishizaka, modified granulation company Kin Corporation, and injection molding manufacturer Nifco. Each party contributes its core technologies and resources: Mizuho Bank provides sustainable industrialization solutions and financing support; Ishizaka is responsible for the fine sorting of waste plastics and the establishment of a full-chain recycling system; Kin Corporation undertakes the plastic modification granulation process from raw materials to finished products; Nifco specializes in product development design, mold development, mass production processing, and finished product performance testing.

The project research and development closely aligns with the regulatory requirements of the EU End-of-Life Vehicles (ELV) directive, creating a high-value recycling model for waste plastics. The sources of recycled materials include conductive modified plastics used in semiconductor carrier trays.

Scaled commercial implementation

After the project’s technical objectives are achieved, Mizuho Bank will provide funding and industrial operation support for the project’s commercialization and mass production. The key to project implementation is for Rifeng to complete validation of the molding process for recycled-material automotive parts, as well as assessments of material mechanical properties, durability performance, and mass-production stability; and for Kin Co., Ltd. to develop recycled modified pellets that meet the stringent entry standards of automakers.

This cross-industry collaboration is an important concrete step in connecting the semiconductor and automotive industrial chains and establishing a supporting system for the green recycling of plastics.