Feasibility study of a circular business model for tyre pressure sensors
Lead Participant:
RL CAPITAL LIMITED
Abstract
The project is a feasibility study on a circular business model for the tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS) sensors.
Currently around 20 million TPMS sensors reach end of life each year, rising to around 40 million sensors by 2030\. Each sensor contains a lithium battery, metal valve stem and plastic casing and in 2022 represented a combined 600,000kg of electronics waste, rising to 1,200,000kg in 2030\. These sensors are currently sent to landfill with significant, harmful environmental impacts.
Sensors are primarily replaced at central vehicle dealerships presenting a unique opportunity for developing a circular business model involving the sale, collection, and targeted recycling of TPMS sensors, recovering key electronics materials and diverting significant quantities of electronics waste from landfill. The project will investigate a process to recover TPMS sensors from dealerships and design a novel targeted recycling process to recover key materials from sensors.
Existing options for electronics recycling typically shred mixed electronics waste. This process is highly inefficient and results in only a portion of material recovery, however the contents of mixed recycling make it difficult to design a more targeted process.
The proposed innovation would transform this process as collecting only TPMS sensors allows for an efficient, targeted recycling process. As part of the process RL Automotive will investigate the potential for Schrader, the market leading TPMS manufacturer, to use recovered sensor material in new sensor manufacturing: a re-use of material that would represent a ground-breaking improvement in circularity. RL Automotive will also investigate the process to feed recyclability data back to Shrader and enable design for recycling. RL Automotive is uniquely positioned due to its extensive experience developing and commercialising innovations including the TyreWatch remote TPMS monitoring platform
Currently around 20 million TPMS sensors reach end of life each year, rising to around 40 million sensors by 2030\. Each sensor contains a lithium battery, metal valve stem and plastic casing and in 2022 represented a combined 600,000kg of electronics waste, rising to 1,200,000kg in 2030\. These sensors are currently sent to landfill with significant, harmful environmental impacts.
Sensors are primarily replaced at central vehicle dealerships presenting a unique opportunity for developing a circular business model involving the sale, collection, and targeted recycling of TPMS sensors, recovering key electronics materials and diverting significant quantities of electronics waste from landfill. The project will investigate a process to recover TPMS sensors from dealerships and design a novel targeted recycling process to recover key materials from sensors.
Existing options for electronics recycling typically shred mixed electronics waste. This process is highly inefficient and results in only a portion of material recovery, however the contents of mixed recycling make it difficult to design a more targeted process.
The proposed innovation would transform this process as collecting only TPMS sensors allows for an efficient, targeted recycling process. As part of the process RL Automotive will investigate the potential for Schrader, the market leading TPMS manufacturer, to use recovered sensor material in new sensor manufacturing: a re-use of material that would represent a ground-breaking improvement in circularity. RL Automotive will also investigate the process to feed recyclability data back to Shrader and enable design for recycling. RL Automotive is uniquely positioned due to its extensive experience developing and commercialising innovations including the TyreWatch remote TPMS monitoring platform
Lead Participant | Project Cost | Grant Offer |
|---|---|---|
| RL CAPITAL LIMITED | £107,883 | £ 75,518 |
Participant |
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| INNOVATE UK |
People |
ORCID iD |
| Mark Longden (Project Manager) |