Oryzite, the material used in the Seat Arona that employs rice as a raw material

Rice is the staple food of the world, the most consumed food on the planet... and now it is also an unexpected ingredient in the SEAT Arona. SEAT has become the first car brand to incorporate two boot support pieces in a series model, made from Oryzite, a renewable and natural material produced with by-products of rice after its cultivation.

Oryzite is an innovative and sustainable material obtained from rice husk, an abundant by-product of the rice industry. The process involves transforming the rice husk through a patented method.

To achieve this, the rice husk resulting from the cleaning and dehusking process of the grain is used. The rice husk is treated with temperature, pressure, and enzymes (also derived from the rice plant in some cases). This process transforms the structure of the rice husk, turning it into a bio-filler in the form of powder or granules.

The resulting Oryzite is mixed with different types of thermoplastic polymers (both with low and high melting points, up to 220°C and even higher). It allows replacing a significant percentage of virgin plastic in the final product, which can vary from 3% to 85% or more. The mixture of Oryzite and polymer is processed using conventional manufacturing techniques such as injection, extrusion, etc., to create various products.

The Oryzite used in the Arona is the result of a project launched in 2020 as a pilot test within the framework of the company's Innovation Days and, after years of joint research and development between SEAT, and the companies Oryzite and SIGIT, has culminated in its full integration into the SEAT Arona series.

When opening the boot of the SEAT Arona, an urban and versatile SUV, nothing suggests that the double floor support pieces have changed their composition. But the reality is that what was once 100% polypropylene and fiberglass now also incorporates 15% of this bio-based alternative to plastic, which is Oryzite.

"In every SEAT Arona that rolls off the production line from now on, 60 grams of rice husk are used, which annually translates into the utilization of up to 5 tonnes of this by-product, sourced from the rice fields of the Ebro Delta, a biosphere reserve," explains Gerard Suriol, Interior Development at SEAT S.A.'s Technical Centre.

Win-win. "We have successfully incorporated this renewable material and thus promote the circular economy, while reducing the use of petroleum-derived products," comments Suriol.

But this 15% of Oryzite brings other advantages beyond sustainability, such as reducing the weight of the piece by 5.8% and the production cost by up to 2%. Oryzite is not only a renewable material but also acts as a carbon sink, contributing to emission reduction and innovatively linking the primary sector with the industrial sector.