- Image via CrunchBase
Although increased usage of biobased materials in plastics is still in the advanced research phase, Ford has already made inroads with other bio-based, reclaimed and recycled materials that are in Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles today, including soy bean-based foam seats, wheat straw to reinforce plastics and corn in the manufacture of seat material. In fact, you may be already be sitting on or using these materials on your daily commute:
Soy-based polyurethane foams on the seat cushions and seat-backs, now in production on the Ford Mustang, Expedition, F-150, Focus, Escape, Escape Hybrid, Mercury Mariner and Lincoln Navigator and Lincoln MKS. More than 1.5 million Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles on the road today have soy-foam seats, which equates to a reduction in petroleum oil usage of approximately 680,000 kilograms.
This year, Ford has expanded its soy-foam portfolio to include the industry’s first application of a soy-foam headliner on the 2010 Ford Escape and Mercury Mariner for a 25 per cent weight savings over a traditional glass-mat headliner.
Underbody systems, such as aerodynamic shields, splash shields and radiator air deflector shields, made from post-consumer recycled resins such as detergent bottles, tires and battery casings, diverting up to 13 million kilograms of plastic from landfills.
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