Vartega

Vartega recycles carbon fiber, taking manufacturing scrap and processing it into a low-cost fiber with mechanical properties close to virgin material, usable in nonwovens, thermoplastics, yarns, and 3D printing filament. Carbon fiber manufacturing throws away as much as 30% of what it makes, thousands of tons a year to landfill, because there is no infrastructure to do anything else with it.

Meanwhile automakers need lightweight material to meet fuel economy standards and can't afford carbon fiber at virgin prices. The waste and the shortage are the same problem viewed from either end. Siting regional processing near the plants that generate the scrap keeps the freight short, which is what makes the economics work. Every kilo of fiber recovered is a kilo that didn't need the enormous energy of making it new, and it goes into a vehicle that then burns less for the rest of its life.