Leonardo
Simon,
a
lead
investigator
with
Ontario’s
BioCar
Initiative,
has
invented
a
process
that
combines
plastic
with
wheat
stalks
to
create
lighter
car
parts.
Ford
Motor
Company
was
the
first
to
make
use
of
the
new
parts
–
its
2010
Ford
Flex,
made
in
the
company’s
Oakville
plant,
includes
straw-reinforced
plastic
storage
bins
for
third
row
passengers.
“The
most
satisfying
thing
was
to
see
that
we’re
using
something
that
is
grown
in
Ontario
in
a
product
that
is
assembled
in
Ontario.
This
is
sustainable
innovation,”
says
Simon,
a
Waterloo
chemical
engineering
professor.
According
to
Ford,
this
small
change
saves
on
petroleum
by
9,100
kg
a
year
and
slashes
carbon
dioxide
emissions
by
13,600
kg
a
year.
Now
Ford
is
looking
into
using
the
material
for
other
new
applications.
Simon,
who
spent
a
great
deal
of
personal
time
getting
the
project
off
the
ground,
worked
with
a
multi-university
team
that’s
part
of
the
Ontario
government-funded
BioCar
project
to
advance
the
use
of
more
plant-based
materials
in
the
auto
industry.
Eighteen
short
months
after
the
BioCar
team
presented
to
Ford’s
Biomaterials
Group
in
2008,
the
straw
reinforced
plastic
was
a
go.
Simon
says
the
quick
turnaround
in
accelerating
the
technology
to
market
is
due
to
the
team
clearly
understanding
what
industry
wanted
and
then
working
hard
to
deliver
it.
“This
has
been
a
very
good
opportunity
for
the
University
of
Waterloo
to
be
recognized
as
having
a
high
impact
on
developing
these
sustainable
technologies
for
the
marketplace.”
Chemical Engineering Professor