Waste not, want not: Dutch students build electric car from recycled material

Van Wijk stands next to a car made of recycled waste in Eindhoven, Netherlands. — Reuters

EINDHOVEN: Dutch students have created a fully functioning electric car made entirely out of waste, including plastics fished out of the sea, recycled PET bottles and household garbage.

The bright yellow, sporty two-seater which the students named ‘Luca’, can reach a top speed of 90 kilometres (56 miles) per hour and has a reach of 220 kilometres when fully charged, the Technical University of Eindhoven said.

“This car is really special, because it’s made all out of waste,” project manager Lisa van Etten told Reuters.

“Our chassis is made out of flax and recycled PET bottles. For the interior we also used unsorted household waste.”

Hard plastics normally found in televisions, toys and kitchen appliances were used for the car’s body, while the seat cushions consist of coconut and horse hairs.

The car was designed and built by a group of 22 students in around 18 months, Van Etten said, as an effort to prove the potential of waste.

“We really hope that car companies will start using waste materials,” production team member Matthijs van Wijk said.

“It’s possible in many applications. More and more companies use waste or biobased materials in the interior, we want to show that it’s also possible to build a chassis out of it.” – Reuters