Carbon Cleanup

What Carbon Cleanup does

Carbon Cleanup GmbH is an Austrian circular-economy scale-up that has built the CARB-E (Carbon Eater), a mobile, AI-supported recycling robot designed to recover high-value carbon and glass fibers from advanced composite waste at the point of generation. Its technology is purpose-built for difficult-to-recycle materials spanning thermoset and thermoplastic matrices as well as prepreg formats, and is engineered for near-zero emissions via HEPA-filtered air handling and dust-free operation. The company serves enterprises in carbon fiber manufacturing, aerospace, wind energy, and automotive that face high composite waste rates (30–50% in carbon fiber production) and tightening circularity regulations such as the EU End-of-Life Vehicle Directive.

The product portfolio centers on three layers: the CARB-E hardware (turnkey mobile recycling unit deployed on customer or partner sites), a family of recycled fiber materials for downstream manufacturing (Fiber Blend for compounding, ecoluxe compounds for injection molding, Moon Materials pellets for LFAM, Carbo3D filament for FDM, and Fiber Needles for BMC), and the Frontrunner Partnership professional services program that runs waste stream analysis, qualification trials, compound development, and second-life application matching. AI is applied to waste characterization and to automatic matching of recovered fiber to verified reuse pathways, with a "Second Life Guarantee" intended to ensure every processed batch is routed into an application.

Commercially, the company sells and deploys CARB-E units under quote-based, multi-year engagements, supplies circular materials to compounders and manufacturers, and runs deep-dive partnerships (e.g., SGL Carbon processing 400+ tonnes of composite waste; KTM Technologies integrating recycled CF/PP into serial automotive parts; Caracol combining recycled CF pellets with LFAM for wind blade tooling). Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed; funding to date consists of a 2021 tech2b incubator placement and ongoing grants from Austrian (FFG, AWS) and European Union circular-economy programs, including the ReCreate initiative. The team is led by co-founder and CEO Jörg Radanitsch alongside three co-founder advisors and a material-science advisory board, with headcount currently in the 1–10 range and operations centered in Traun and Hörsching, Austria.

Name

Carbon Cleanup

Legal name

Carbon Cleanup GmbH

Website

https://carbon-cleanup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Carbon Cleanup GmbH builds the CARB-E mobile, AI-supported recycling robot that recovers carbon and glass fiber from advanced composite waste on-site, supplying recycled materials and qualification services to aerospace, wind energy, automotive, and fiber-manufacturing enterprises.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Composite Recycling Equipment

NAICS

Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing (326)

SIC

Miscellaneous Plastics Products (3080)

akta.pro primary industry

Plastic Recycling Equipment & Technology Providers (Sorting, Washing, Extrusion) (EUAIAKAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Mechanical Plastics Recycling (Wash/Grind/Flake/Pellet) (IMANAMAC), Engineering Plastics Recycling (ABS, PC, PA, POM, PMMA) (EUAIAKAI)

Keywords

• Carbon fiber recycling
• Composite waste processing
• Mobile recycling robots
• Recycled material compounds
• Circular composite solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Traun

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. CARB-E Recycling Robots: Sale and deployment of mobile recycling robots (CARB-E) for on-site carbon fiber waste processing. Highly automated systems ensure efficient recycling with minimal manual handling.
2. Circular Materials: Supply of recycled carbon fiber materials including Fiber Blend, ecoluxe compounds for injection molding, Moon Materials for LFAM, and Carbo3D for FDM printing. Materials supplied to compounders and manufacturers.
3. Frontrunner Partnership Services: Deep-dive collaboration services including waste stream analysis, material characterization, compound development, testing and validation, and business case building for circular materials.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Carbon Cleanup manufactures and deploys CARB-E (Carbon Eater), a mobile, AI-supported recycling robot that mechanically processes carbon fiber, glass fiber, and composite waste into reusable fiber reinforcement on-site with a near-zero footprint. The company also supplies circular materials (Fiber Blend, ecoluxe, Moon Materials, Carbo3D, Fiber Needles) for injection molding, LFAM, BMC, and FDM 3D printing, and offers Frontrunner Partnership services for waste stream analysis, compound development, and circular supply chain integration.

Product overview

Carbon Cleanup offers a unified circular economy platform centered on the CARB-E (Carbon Eater) mobile recycling technology, which converts composite waste (carbon fiber and glass fiber) into high-performance recycled materials. The portfolio includes three specialized material product lines: Fiber Blend for compounding applications, ecoluxe compounds for injection molding, and Moon Materials for large-format additive manufacturing, plus Carbo3D filament for FDM printing. The Frontrunner Partnership program provides collaborative development services to help partners integrate circular materials into their supply chains.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CARB-E (Carbon Eater): Mobile recycling robot system for carbon fiber waste that enables on-site material recovery with near-zero footprint
• Fiber Blend
• Ecoluxe
• Moon Materials
• Carbo3DPETG15rCF
• Fiber Needles
• Frontrunner Partnership

Products and services

• CARB-E (Carbon Eater) Recycling Robot Mobile, plug-and-play robotic system that mechanically converts carbon fiber, glass fiber, and composite production scrap and end-of-life parts into valuable fiber reinforcement. Designed for on-site deployment at aerospace, wind energy, and automotive manufacturers, with HEPA-filtered air systems and AI-supported waste material matching to suitable second-life applications.
• Fiber Blend 100% recycled carbon fiber material processed using CARB-E technology, offering consistent quality and compatibility with thermoplastic and thermoset compounding for industrial compounders and manufacturers.
• ecoluxe Carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic compound product line for injection molding, including PP rCF, rPP rCF, PA6 rCF, and ABS rCF formulations with 10–30% recycled CFRP content. Targeted at automotive and industrial part manufacturers seeking lightweight, sustainable feedstock.
• Moon Materials Carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic pellet product line for large-format additive manufacturing (LFAM), including rPETG rCF, ABS rCF, and PP rCF grades optimized for pellet-fed 3D printing systems used in wind blade tooling and large industrial part production.
• Carbo3D PETG15rCF Carbon fiber-reinforced PETG filament (1.75mm) for fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printing, combining mechanical performance with glossy finish for functional parts in industrial and prototyping applications.
• Fiber Needles Specially designed recycled carbon fiber materials for Bulk Molding Compound (BMC) applications, developed jointly with KTM Technologies to enable high-performance thermoset parts.
• Frontrunner Partnership Collaborative engagement program for selected enterprise partners covering waste stream analysis, material characterization, lab-scale trials using CARB-E, compound development, performance testing and validation, and business case building for circular material integration into supply chains.

Quantifiable outcome

• Waste volume reduction up to 90%
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• KTM TechnologiescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 May 2025Deep collaboration to transform automotive waste into high-performance products. Carbon Cleanup provides carbon fiber recycling technology; KTM Technologies contributes engineering expertise for designing, prototyping, and validating mobility components. Joint development of compounds for injection molding and Fiber Needles for BMC applications using recycled carbon fiber and polypropylene from crashed X-Bow race cars and end-of-life motorbike parts.
• CaracolcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 December 2024Collaboration for large-format additive manufacturing (LFAM) using recycled carbon fiber from end-of-life wind turbine blades and automotive components. Caracol provides robotic 3D printing platform; Carbon Cleanup supplies recycled carbon fiber-based composite pellets. Joint development of 3D-printed lamination tools for wind blade applications.
• SGL CarboncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSGL Carbon uses Carbon Cleanup's CARB-E recycling technology to transform composite waste into reusable materials. SGL Carbon processes more than 400 tonnes of composite waste using Carbon Cleanup's mobile recycling solution.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Gen 2 Carbon: UK-based recycler of end-of-life carbon fiber composites into reclaimed fiber products (formerly ELG Carbon Fibre). Most direct comparable: sells recycled carbon fiber products into similar downstream compounding, molding, and 3D-printing applications as Carbon Cleanup.
• Carbon Conversions: US-based carbon fiber composite recycler converting manufacturing scrap and end-of-life parts into reusable carbon fiber products. Directly comparable in feedstock (composite waste) and outputs (recycled fiber for compounding and molding).
• Vartega: US-based recycler producing low-cost, high-quality reclaimed carbon fiber from manufacturing waste and end-of-life parts for thermoplastics and 3D-printing applications. Competes for the same rCF feedstock and downstream materials customers as Carbon Cleanup.
• Carbon Fiber Remanufacturing (CFR): UK-based recycler using pyrolysis to recover carbon fiber from end-of-life composites. Competes with Carbon Cleanup's mechanical CARB-E approach for the same composite-waste feedstock and downstream rCF applications.

Broad incumbents

• SGL Carbon: Global carbon fiber and composite products incumbent; currently a Carbon Cleanup customer using CARB-E to process 400+ tonnes of waste. Relevant as both a customer and a broader incumbent that could choose to internalize recycling or work with alternative recyclers.
• Toray Industries: Largest global carbon fiber producer with active recycled-CF programs and sustainability commitments. Competes indirectly by driving in-house recycling initiatives that could compete with independent recyclers like Carbon Cleanup.
• Mitsubishi Chemical: Major carbon fiber and composite materials producer (including recycled-CF grades). Sets the benchmark pricing and qualification standards against which Carbon Cleanup's recycled materials compete in compounding and molding applications.
• Teijin: Carbon fiber and composite materials incumbent with sustainability-focused recycled-content offerings in automotive and aerospace. Competes for OEM mindshare on circular composite supply chains.

Emerging players

• Carbios: French biotech company commercializing enzymatic recycling of PET plastics. Comparable as an emerging deep-tech plastics-recycling platform addressing circular-economy mandates, though operating in a different polymer (PET) with a different technology (enzymatic vs. mechanical).
• Markforged: Industrial 3D printing company with a continuous carbon fiber-reinforced printing platform. Adjacent rather than directly competitive: uses carbon fiber in printing rather than recycling it, but is a downstream channel partner for recycled-CF filaments and competes for similar industrial 3D-printing customers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/carbon-cleanup-gmbh
• Instagraminstagram.com/carboncleanup/?hl=en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Carbon Cleanup