Ford uses wheat straw and PP in Flex interior

FAIRLAWN, OHIO (Nov. 18, 3:25 p.m. ET) -- A bio-based plastics additive developed by A. Schulman Inc. has won recognition for its use in Ford Motor Co.’s Flex crossover vehicle.

Schulman’s AgriPlas-brand wheat straw fiber bio-filler is a polypropylene-based additive that uses wheat straw, a material that’s a by-product of harvesting wheat. AgriPlas is used in an injection-molded storage bin and inner lid for the interior of the Flex.

On Nov. 16, the application was named a Blue Ribbon Finalist for an Environmental Innovation Award given by the automotive division of the Society of Plastics Engineers. Omtec Corp., International Automotive Components and the University of Waterloo in Waterloo, Ontario, worked with Schulman and Ford on the project.

AgriPlas provided the application with 10 percent weight savings, increased dimensional stability, lower energy use and a lower carbon footprint, officials with Fairlawn, Ohio-based Schulman said in a news release. The application is the first industrial application of a wheat straw-reinforced plastic, they added.

The project “is an encouraging step in delivering innovative new products that use renewable materials,” Schulman vice president and chief marketing officer Paul Boulier said in the release.

Ford technical expert Ellen Lee said that her firm “sees a great deal of potential for other applications, since wheat straw has good mechanical properties, can meet our performance and durability specifications and can further reduce our carbon footprint.”

Schulman ranks as one of North America’s 10 largest plastics compounders, according to a recent Plastics News industry estimate. The firm also operates a resin distribution unit.

Steve Savage, Ph.D.

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