Samyangsa-Korea Fibers, Joint Development of Electric Vehicle Battery Pack Cases Using Recycled Fishing Nets

On the 26th, Samyang Corporation and Korea Fibers signed a "Joint Development Agreement for Eco-Friendly Lightweight Battery Packs for Electric Vehicles" at Samyang's headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Lee Jun-hee, Head of AM BU at Samyang (left), and Han Joo-hee, Director of the Korea Fibers Research Institute, are taking a commemorative photo. Photo by Samyang Corporation

Samyang Corporation is expanding the use of plastics recycled from discarded fishing nets to develop eco-friendly, lightweight parts for electric vehicles.

Samyang Corporation, a chemical and food affiliate of Samyang Group, and Korea Fiber, a composite materials specialist, signed a "Joint Development Agreement (MOU) for Eco-Friendly Lightweight Battery Pack Cases for Electric Vehicles" on the 26th at Samyang Corporation's headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul.

Under this agreement, Samyang Corporation will supply Korea Fiber with plastic compound materials made from recycled discarded fishing nets. Korea Fiber will use these materials to develop lightweight battery pack cases for electric vehicles.

The battery pack case is a component that encases the battery module for electric vehicles. It is a key part that safely protects the battery, which is vulnerable to external shocks. To reduce vehicle weight while protecting against heat and impact, materials that are lightweight and have excellent strength are essential.

The plastic compound produced by Samyang Corporation using recycled discarded fishing nets overcomes the drawbacks of recycled plastics, which typically have inferior physical properties, through compounding technology, achieving performance equivalent to that of general plastics. Through this joint development, the two companies aim to realize carbon neutrality and a circular economy, securing advanced technology for vehicle weight reduction, a major issue in the electric vehicle market.

Lee Jun-hee, Head of the Advanced Materials Business Unit (AM BU) at Samyang Corporation, said, "Discarded fishing nets dumped into domestic seas amount to about 40,000 tons annually and are identified as a serious cause of marine pollution. Through this collaboration with Korea Fiber, we will expand the use of recycled plastics made from discarded fishing nets and take the lead in ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management."

Han Joo-hee, Director of the Korea Fiber Research Institute, said, "Through this cooperation between the two companies, we expect to commercialize products that meet customer needs by securing quality reliability for the application of eco-friendly recycled intermediate materials in electric vehicles."

Meanwhile, Samyang Group has recently been accelerating the expansion of its eco-friendly materials business. Last year, Samyang Corporation signed a supply contract for recycled plastic pellets made from discarded fishing nets with Netspar, a recycling company. Plastics made from these pellets are being developed for automotive interior and exterior materials, electronic products, and household goods, with commercialization imminent. Additionally, Samyang developed Korea's first polycarbonate containing more than 90% post-consumer recycled polycarbonate (PCR PC) raw materials and independently developed an eco-friendly transparent flame-retardant polycarbonate without using flame retardants.

Samyang Innochem, a chemical affiliate, completed a white bio-material "Isosorbide" production plant in Gunsan, Jeonbuk, last year. Samyang Packaging is expanding its recycled plastic business by introducing and operating a recycling PET chip production facility with a capacity of 21,000 tons.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.