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Chemical recycling, often referred to as feedstock or tertiary recycling, refers to a variety of processes that turn plastic waste into an upstream feedstock that produces secondary raw materials with the same quality as virgin materials.
The opportunity for plastic waste streams that are typically not recovered mechanically (or in any other way) is provided by these recovery technologies.
In this approach, waste is moved from energy recovery or landfills to higher-quality recycling.
The importance of chemical recycling has grown as a promising recovery technology, particularly for post-consumer plastic waste.
It is viewed as an alternative to mechanical recycling and is more suited for challenging plastics to recycle, such as multi-layer products or highly contaminated plastics.
Chemical recycling, excluding energy recovery, is any reprocessing method that directly modifies the composition of polymeric waste or the polymer itself and transforms it into chemicals or chemicals-related products.
Chemical and thermal depolymerization are the two main categories into which chemical recycling can be divided.
Chemical depolymerization is the process by which polymers of plastic are disassembled into oligomers or monomers.
Since new virgin polymers can be made after each depolymerization, the method enables chemical recycling of the plastic material repeatedly.
Plastic waste is heated up during the thermal depolymerization process, either with little or no oxygen present. It generates a feedstock for compounds.
With bio-based plastic, there is also the option of chemical recycling.
For a variety of bio-based drop-ins, including bio-based PE, bio-based PET, and bio-based PP, feedstock recycling can be developed. By using a chemical depolymerizer, PLA can be recycled.
Research has also shown that it is possible to separate PLA and PET using chemical recycling, with both materials being recycled in two steps.
Chemical recycling of bio-based plastics promotes a circular bioeconomy by extending the life of renewable resources and lowering the amount of renewable feedstock needed to make new, high-quality bio-based plastics.
The Global EV chemically recycled plastics market accounted for $XX Billion in 2022 and is anticipated to reach $XX Billion by 2030, registering a CAGR of XX% from 2023 to 2030.
In order to create and use chemical recycling that will enable the circular manufacturing of virgin-quality plastics for automotive components, Mercedes-Benz is collaborating with BASF and the start-up Pyrum Innovations.
This strategy utilises Pyrum Innovations’ pyrolysis oil produced from used tyres and BASF’s chemical recycling technology, which produces biomethane from agricultural waste.
It is feasible to produce a plastic of virgin grade that is certified in line with the so-called mass balance approach by combining the two ingredients.
According to Mercedes, this recycled plastic has the same properties as virgin plastic made from crude oil, enabling it to be used in continuous production as a drop-in replacement while still satisfying the necessary quality standards for paintability and crash safety.
Audi and the Karlsruhe University of Technology, chemical recycling of mixed plastic waste is technically possible as well as environmentally and financially advantageous (KIT).
Plastic is used to make several automotive components, such as radiator grilles, air bag covers, and gasoline tanks.
These components must adhere to strict standards for quality, heat resistance, and safety.
As a result, mechanically recycled plastics frequently fall short of performance standards, therefore plastic parts that are subject to high degrees of stress are normally manufactured from “virgin” materials.
Moreover, it is frequently impossible to mechanically recycle mixed plastic garbage.
One of the first auto manufacturers to test this recycling method is Audi. Finding out if the procedure can be applied on an industrial scale is the next step.
