Cyclic Materials, an advanced metals recycling company building a circular supply chain for rare earth elements and other critical metals, has signed a collaboration agreement for the recycling of electric motors containing rare earths with SYNETIQ, an IAA company and the UK’s leading integrated vehicle salvage and recycling company. The motors to be supplied by SYNETIQ include drive motors in hybrid and electric vehicles, as well as auxiliary motors present in all vehicles.

Established in 2021, Cyclic Materials develops technologies that are capable of economically, sustainably and domestically transforming end-of-life (EOL) products into valuable raw materials. The recycling of rare earths delivers significant environmental benefits in comparison to mining processes, including a reduced carbon footprint and water usage.

Cyclic Materials recently opened its Kingston-based “Hub100” commercial demonstration plant, deploying its proprietary hydrometallurgical technology, REEPure and helping fulfill the ever-increasing demand for domestic sources of mixed rare earth oxide (MREO) in North America.

Cyclic Materials’ proprietary Mag-Cycle and REEPure technologies are the first with the capacity to separate magnets from end-of-life products, such as electric motors, and then to convert this magnet product to mixed rare earth oxides, cobalt-nickel hydroxides and other raw materials.

Feedstock from SYNETIQ will be received by Cyclic Materials’ “spoke” facility and processed with Mag-Cycle before ultimately being sent to Cyclic Material’s Hub100 plant for processing using REEPure technology.

Salvage and dismantling yards, such as those operated by SYNETIQ, can maximize the materials and value recovered from hybrid and electric vehicles, as well as smaller motors in internal combustion engine vehicles, through partnerships such as this one with Cyclic Materials.