GKN Aerospace took a step forward this month to cracking one of the big drawbacks of carbonfibre components: recycling. A deal with Recycled Carbon Fibre of Birmingham will see scraps from GKN's carbon aerostructures operation at Cowes, Isle of Wight, shipped to the West Midlands for recycling into paints and coatings, thermoplastic polymers, composite tooling and deep sea buoyancy products.

GKN estimates that nearly 100 tonnes of carbon waste from the Cowes site will be recycled in the next 12 months as part of this cost neutral agreement. Until now, the only solutions for disposing of carbonfibre reinforced plastic waste have been landfill or incineration.

Source: Flight Daily News

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