Torqeedo’s newest propellers will soon be built from recycled plastics that would otherwise enter the world’s oceans. Torqeedo is collaborating with multiple partners who collect plastic bottles from rivers, streams and coastal areas that lie within 30 miles of shorelines in countries lacking sufficient waste management. These partners clean, sort and shred the bottles into a granulated material that meets Torqeedo’s needs.
“A major hurdle in using recycled plastics was ensuring the availability of materials of consistent quality,” says Florian Deger, Torqeedo’s engineer of advanced materials and technologies.
Torqeedo’s Advanced Engineering Team created an in-house testing protocol to ensure quality. The company’s long-term goal is to transition from using virgin plastic to using 100 percent recycled material.
A Prop Twist
Torqeedo’s Travel outboard series will be its first motors to use the recycled propellers. Roughly 30 percent of each motor is built from plastic; propellers account for about 5 percent of this use. In time, Torqeedo plans to build other components from recycled plastics. Using recycled plastic reduces the propellers’ carbon-dioxide signature by 88 percent. The recycled propellers have Torqeedo’s signature orange color.
Take the next step: torqeedo.com
