The REMADE Institute has issued its fourth Request for Proposals (RFP) to invest up to $35M for research and development of transformational technologies to increase the recovery, reuse, remanufacturing and recycling of metals, polymers, fibers, and e-waste. The funding will be matched by project participants, for a total investment of up to $70M.
REMADE has made it a priority to focus on the plastic value chain by especially seeking proposals that will significantly increase the domestic recycling of plastics. Using recycled plastic instead of virgin plastic can reduce energy consumption by up to 79% and greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 67%*
Nabil Nasr, REMADE’s CEO, stated “With the challenges facing industry today, it is increasingly important to improve U.S. manufacturing competitiveness. Our partnership of 100 industry, national laboratory, and academic innovators are working together to reduce the energy and environmental burden of domestic manufacturing while delivering value to industry, the economy, and the environment.”
REMADE has invested $20M in projects to date. These promising technology advancements cut across multiple industries and the entire material lifecycle. For a detailed description and application process for the current Request for Proposals (RFP), visit https://remadeinstitute.org/rfp.
This RFP solicits proposals for projects in two areas:
- Transformational Research & Development (R&D) Projects. Transformational R&D project proposals will demonstrate the potential to transform the recycling and remanufacturing industries through technological innovation.
- Traditional R&D Projects. Traditional R&D projects will develop tools and technologies that are consistent with the research priorities in the REMADE Roadmap. Traditional R&D project proposals can cover all four material classes, including plastics.
REMADE envisions awarding approximately $35 million in support of these projects, with a minimum 50% cost share required from each team. REMADE Institute membership is not required. However, all final project team members (other than vendors and service providers) must be REMADE members at the time the project is awarded.
The REMADE Institute also announced the selection of 9 projects for negotiation dedicated to improving the competitiveness of US Manufacturing and advancing the circular economy.
The below three teams – amongst others - have been selected for negotiations:
- Low Heat Repair of Cast Iron. Rochester Institute of Technology, John Deere Reman
The objective of this project is to develop a robust weld repair process that does not require pre-heat temperatures greater than 315 °C and shortens cool down periods to less than eight hours. In addition, the process will be able to consistently create a weld with minimal regions of high hardness and no cracks in or around the weld.
- Design Iteration Tool to Sustain Remanufacturability. Iowa State University, Danfoss
The overall goal of this project is the development and application of a software plug-in to enable the design of components that will satisfy both EPA standards-driven light weighting efforts and parametric feature designs that enable remanufacturability (e.g., remove material where feasible for light-weighting and, at the same time, add material where needed to sustain remanufacturability). To achieve this goal, the first objective of this project is to establish a best practice approach to modify a typical design process for DfReman. The second objective is the creation of a software plugin for mainstream CAD software to enable design for remanufacturing consideration of high-value components.
This tool will use realistic life estimates to automatically generate design alternatives for sustained remanufacturability, thereby reducing energy, emissions, material consumption and cost. This tool development will focus on engine cylinder heads and industrial pump components and will facilitate the generation of designs that will make components more readily available for remanufacturing processes, such as, re-machining of critical wear features for return to service, complete with estimates of cost/benefit of analysis for multiple lifecycles.
The third and final objective disseminate the results of this project by developing training videos on the application of DfReman rules and the software plugin and creating a website to disseminate the plugin and training materials.
- Rapid Damage Identification to Reduce Remanufacturing Costs. Iowa State University, John Deere & Company
The objective of this project is to develop and validate a remanufacturability assessment method that will support decision making about the viability of remanufacturing a component. The proposed method is based on development of machine learning (ML) techniques for recognizing different types of component damage, embedding developed ML algorithms in low-cost, damage-identification hardware for use in-process at the remanufacturing factory floor, and using this in-process technique to develop a real- time estimate of remanufacturing costs for a component. Although most high-value, metal-alloy components can be remanufactured, sufficiently accurate and rapid decision making support tools are needed to significantly reduce remanufacturing costs and increase the throughput and volume of remanufactured components.
Interested to learn more about the other teams and projects? Read this article from https://www.greencarcongress.com/
