Direct aluminium-alloy upcycling from entire end-of life vehicles

Direct aluminium-alloy upcycling from entire end-of life vehicles | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Physical Sciences - Article Direct aluminium-alloy upcycling from entire end-of life vehicles Stefan Pogatscher, Patrick Krall, Irmgard Weißensteiner, Philip Aster, and 5 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7059967/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 13 Feb, 2026 Read the published version in Nature Communications → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The global transition to a circular economy hinges on the development of sustainable recycling processes for end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) 1,2 . ELV recyclability currently faces major challenges in connection with aluminium parts. Modern cars contain both wrought and cast aluminium alloys, which are incompatible for a recycled high-performance alloy 2–7 . Failing to reintegrate this aluminium scrap forfeits substantial energy, emissions, and cost savings 8,9 . Electrification and last decades materials selection generate a surplus 2,6 of low-grade scrap 6,10 , making the need for novel ELV recycling approaches even more urgent. This study presents a process for directly upcycling mixed ELV scrap into a high-performance aluminium alloy under realistic industrial conditions. The process dispenses with the need for sorting or dilution and is compatible with existing infrastructure. By leveraging metallurgical principles of heterostructures 11 and accelerated precipitation 12 , it achieves yield strengths more than double those produced by previous rapid solidification methods 13 , even surpassing the commercial automotive alloy spectrum. The process is tailored to the compositions of both shredded ELV scrap from today’s average European vehicles, and future global scrap streams. The new approach establishes a circular, low-emissions route to high-value aluminium recovery and offers a strategic model for transforming critical raw material streams into next-generation structural alloys. Physical sciences/Materials science Physical sciences/Materials science/Structural materials/Metals and alloys Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files Supplementaryinformation.pdf Direct aluminium-alloy upcycling from complete end- of-life vehicles: Supplementary information Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 13 Feb, 2026 Read the published version in Nature Communications → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7059967","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Physical Sciences - Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":488986747,"identity":"7baabdcd-24a4-4cd1-bf7c-bb3056b3c650","order_by":0,"name":"Stefan 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ELV recyclability currently faces major challenges in connection with aluminium parts. Modern cars contain both wrought and cast aluminium alloys, which are incompatible for a recycled high-performance alloy\u003csup\u003e2–7\u003c/sup\u003e. Failing to reintegrate this aluminium scrap forfeits substantial energy, emissions, and cost savings\u003csup\u003e8,9\u003c/sup\u003e. Electrification and last decades materials selection generate a surplus\u003csup\u003e2,6\u003c/sup\u003e of low-grade scrap\u003csup\u003e6,10\u003c/sup\u003e, making the need for novel ELV recycling approaches even more urgent. This study presents a process for directly upcycling mixed ELV scrap into a high-performance aluminium alloy under realistic industrial conditions. The process dispenses with the need for sorting or dilution and is compatible with existing infrastructure. 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