Nissan Rogue built with closed-loop recycling system for aluminum

Nissan says the hood and doors of the 2021 Rogue are stamped from aluminum alloy, reducing vehicle weight and helping to improve fuel efficiency and power performance. The model is built in Kyushu, Japan, and Smyrna, Tennessee.

To support the process, Nissan says it partnered with Kobe Steel Ltd. and UACJ Corp. in Japan and with Arconic Corp. and Novelis in the U.S.

At the core of the closed-loop recycling system is a large pneumatic conveyance system, according to Nissan. As hoods and doors are stamped into shape, scrap material is shredded and extracted, keeping aluminum grades separate. Nissan says the separation ensures that the company can return high-quality scrap to its suppliers, which turn the separated and reprocessed aluminum scrap into aluminum alloy sheets and redeliver them to Nissan for use in production.

According to the Arlington, Virginia-based Aluminum Association, recycling scrap aluminum saves more than 90 percent of the energy needed to create a comparable amount from raw materials. The organization estimates that nearly 75 percent of all aluminum made is still in use.

The company adds that its Nissan Green Program 2022 has a target to replace 30 percent of the raw materials used in cars built in 2022 with materials that don’t rely on newly mined resources. To achieve this, the company will use recycled materials and develop biomaterials, carry out recycling activities both at suppliers and in-house and seek to reduce the weight of car bodies. Nissan states that it plans to continue to promote efficient and sustainable use of resources, including the use of renewable and recyclable resources.

© Nissan