{"id":916,"date":"2024-09-16T11:03:13","date_gmt":"2024-09-16T11:03:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/?p=916"},"modified":"2024-09-17T05:51:28","modified_gmt":"2024-09-17T05:51:28","slug":"advanced-recycling-a-pivotal-tool-for-circularity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/2024\/09\/16\/advanced-recycling-a-pivotal-tool-for-circularity\/","title":{"rendered":"Advanced Recycling: A Pivotal Tool for Circularity"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Rey Banatao, director, project lead for X, the Moonshot Factory, or Google X<\/figcaption>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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While the range of advanced recycling technologies may vary widely, one thing the conference made clear is that there are many commonalities. Among them are challenges in sourcing feedstock and gaining market acceptance as well as the potential impact of global, federal, and local packaging regulations\u2014challenges that are not unlike those faced by traditional mechanical recycling systems.Yet, if these hurdles are overcome, advanced recycling can unleash a new and abundant supply of virgin-quality plastics made from materials previously bound for landfill or incineration. Emphasized Suzanne Shelton, president and CEO of marketing communications agency ERM Shelton Group<\/a><\/b>, in her presentation on how suppliers and brands should frame the concept to consumers, \u201cAdvanced recycling is a pivotal, critical tool in the shift from a linear economy to a circular economy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Why is it needed?<\/span><\/h2><\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The simplest definition of advanced recycling is that it\u2019s a process that breaks down plastic waste into its original components and uses those components to create new products. There are three categories of advanced recycling technologies\u2014purification, depolymerization, and conversion, also known as pyrolysis (the main focus of the conference). Each one requires different inputs and results in different outputs. Feedstock for advanced recycling processes comprises plastic waste that is unable to be recycled through mechanical processes. Therefore, it complements mechanical recycling, providing another tool in the toolbox for enabling circular plastics.<\/p>

As the conference presentations outlined, advanced recycling is being driven by several factors. Among them are the increase in plastic pollution; commitments made by CPG brands as part of Ellen MacArthur Foundation\u2019s New Plastics Economy Global Commitment to reduce their use of virgin plastic materials; the growing list of states enacting EPR legislation that mandates the use of post-consumer recycled plastic content; and a growth in the global population and global wealth, which will result in more plastics in the economy.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Michelle Salim, NA advanced recycling commercial manager for ExxonMobil<\/figcaption>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\u201cThe demand for products that support circularity is growing, and it\u2019s far exceeding the supply that can be met with mechanical recycling,\u201d said Michelle Salim, NA advanced recycling commercial manager for ExxonMobil<\/a><\/b>. \u201cSociety\u2019s goal cannot be met without advanced recycling.\u201d<\/p>

Jon Konen, senior business development manager for Advanced Recycling & Bio Feedstocks North America at LyondellBasell<\/a><\/b>, put some numbers to the problem of demand versus supply. According to data from LyondellBasell, there is a 50% gap between the amount of PCR retailers need to meet their 2025 goals and what\u2019s available; for brands, the gap is 65%. \u201cAs you go beyond 2025, we tend to see these numbers grow,\u201d Konen added. \u201cThere\u2019s a huge shortage for both brands and retailers in meeting their recycled content obligations and what they said they would do.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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According to LyondellBasell, there is a significant gap in the amount of PCR plastic needed by brand owners and retailers to meet their sustainable packaging goals and the amount of the material that\u2019s available.<\/figcaption>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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This gap is the result of significant challenges around the collection and sorting of materials that can be mechanically recycled, along with the substantial loss of packaging materials and formats that can\u2019t be mechanically recycled, even if the challenges with collection and sorting were solved. These latter materials are ultimately sent to landfill or incinerated. Said Konen, \u201cWe need to work on that $70 billion of value that\u2019s lost through lack of collection and reprocessing in the industry today.\u201d<\/p>

Another roadblock for brands attempting to include more PCR in their packaging is that some mechanically recycled materials can\u2019t be used for direct food-contact or healthcare applications due to contamination. Instead, these materials are downcycled for use in non-packaging applications such as decking and park benches.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Brendan Adams, associate director of Government Affairs for The Kraft Heinz Company<\/figcaption>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Because advanced recycling technologies either purify waste plastic materials or break them down into their chemical components for use in creating new resins, the PCR resulting from these processes is virgin quality. Said Brendan Adams, associate director of Government Affairs for The Kraft Heinz Company, \u201cI pulled a quote from the Closed Loop Partners\u2019 report, and they say that advanced or molecular recycling technologies can expand the scope of materials we can recycle, help preserve the value of resources in our economy, and bridge the gap between supply and demand for high-quality recycled plastics like food-grade plastics.<\/p>

\u201cIt goes on to say that it sees advanced recycling as a vehicle to satisfy food-grade recycled content needs and complex packaging structures like flexible films, thermoforms, and other types of plastics.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Challenges with feedstock sourcing and sorting<\/span><\/h2><\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The gap between the amount of PCR needed and the amount that\u2019s available has created a strong business case for investment, with 50 new advanced recycling projects kicked off in 2023 alone, Konen shared. Considering current investments, the supply of PCR from advanced recycling is estimated to be 10 million tons\u2014still short of the 15 million tons of demand, just from packaging. \u201cWe see that [gap] driving further investment and what\u2019s needed to move the industry forward,\u201d he added.<\/p>

LyondellBasell is currently building its first large-scale advanced recycling facility in Germany, expected to produce 50,000 metric tons\/yr of its Circulen Revive advanced recycled polymers by 2026.<\/p>

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Meanwhile, in 2022, ExxonMobil began operation of its Baytown, Tex., facility, which can produce up to 40,000 metric tons of its Exxtend advanced recycled material. It\u2019s also constructing a second plant, with startup scheduled for 2025. \u201cThat\u2019s part of our plan to have more than a billion pounds of processing capacity globally by 2027,\u201d shared ExxonMobil\u2019s Salim<\/p>

Despite chemical companies\u2019 significant investment in advanced recycling technologies, some never get off the ground due to difficulties sourcing feedstock, much of which has never been sorted or collected before.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Carson Potter, product leader for AMP<\/figcaption>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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According to Carson Potter, product leader for AMP<\/a><\/b>, a provider of AI technology for waste and recycling companies, AMP\u2019s clients often follow a similar pattern where they develop their own conversion technologies or license the technology, testing it and validating it using high-quality feedstocks. After moving from a venture to a pilot scale and then to scale up, a number of them get stuck in the finance stage, realizing they now need enough feedstock to justify their facility.<\/p>

\u201cThat\u2019s where we start to see a lot of the unanticipated challenges accumulate,\u201d he said. \u201cAnother point is that when a company starts to drive more volume to a facility, they need to look for more profitable materials, which don\u2019t always equate to the cleanest, most concentrated materials.\u201d<\/p>

Shared Brian Schellati, director of business development and process engineer for Van Dyk Recycling Solutions<\/a><\/b>, a supplier of turnkey sorting systems to waste haulers and recyclers, \u201cTo build a large-scale commercial facility, there\u2019s not enough perfectly clean material to justify a plant. So you have to expect the input material to be contaminated, and you have to design the mechanical processing to handle that.\u201d<\/p>

As he explained, the sorting of plastic waste residue from MRFs is a complex process, given that the composition of a bale of MRF residue is not the same from facility to facility, or even consistent from the same facility. \u201cThe plants are very different,\u201d he said. \u201cSome are old, some are new, some are better than others. The MRF residue can come from different sources within the MRF. So these waste plastic plants have to expect all different types of contamination coming into these facilities.\u201d<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Van Dyk Recycling Solutions supplied the preprocessing equipment for Freepoint Eco-Systems, which is opening a new plant in Ohio to process waste plastic for chemical recycling.<\/figcaption>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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He then recommended sorting systems for advanced recycling feedstock preparation\u2014including bale wire removers, bale liberators, elliptical\/ballistic separators, conveyors, and optical sorters, etc.\u2014noting that significant mechanical processing of materials must must be done before they are sent through optical sorters so they are fed the right way, in the right size, and without fines.<\/p>

Schellati focused on the characterization of materials and using flexible, modular equipment and AI capabilities to adapt to changing feedstock. \u201cWhen you combine these things, you end up with a lower-cost sensor that can essentially update over time, provide you with a number of secondary characteristics, and ideally be employed liberally throughout the plant to give you a really clean idea of what\u2019s going into the [advanced recycling] reactor and what supply quality you\u2019re actually receiving.\u201d<\/p>

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He also explained how tracking of all materials allows a company to extricate all of the value out of the non-target feedstock as well and resell those materials as commodities\u2014in effect using \u201cevery part of the buffalo.\u201d<\/p>

He noted that \u201chaving that kind of data-driven mentality not only allows you to manage your feedstock strategy more effectively, but it also gives you a more advanced set of capabilities in terms of getting real-time daily and weekly operational status, understanding yield, understanding purity, also understanding if things are going wrong in your plant.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Plastic waste requires a \u2018moonshot\u2019 solution<\/span><\/h2><\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Another speaker who emphasized the role data can play in driving advanced recycling was Rey Banatao, director, project lead for X<\/a><\/b>, the Moonshot Factory, more commonly referred to as Google X. Founded by data and AI company Google, Google X is a research lab that develops and launches technologies to tackle some of the world\u2019s most difficult problems. Driven by its chief sustainability officer, Kate Brandt, Google\u2019s circularity mission is to maximize the reuse of finite resources across Google\u2019s own product and operations, internally, \u201cbut most importantly, we want to enable others to do the same,\u201d said Banatao.<\/p>

Upon learning that the top sustainability search term is recycling\u2014\u201cover things like climate or electric vehicles or GHGs,\u201d said Banatao\u2014Google saw an opportunity \u00a0to contribute to circularity.<\/p>

\u201cAs we leaned in further, these are the three areas that were communicated back to us. First is obviously the waste industry is a data-sparse industry in our opinion compared to other areas we work in. There\u2019s not a lot of information out there about the quality of waste, where it\u2019s at, how to get your hands on it, and pricing, and where it ends up once it\u2019s recycled. So the ability to identify information and follow that material through its lifecycle is important. Then we looked at the recycling technologies themselves, and that\u2019s why we\u2019re really interested in advanced recycling. There\u2019s a lot of room for improvement.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rey Banatao, director, project lead for X, the Moonshot Factory, or Google X While the range of advanced recycling technologies may vary widely, one thing the conference made clear is that there are many commonalities. Among them are challenges in sourcing feedstock and gaining market acceptance as well as the potential impact of global, federal, […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":924,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-916","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/3_Banato.66df3714d7dcf.avif","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/916","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=916"}],"version-history":[{"count":21,"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/916\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":953,"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/916\/revisions\/953"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/924"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/avaxplus.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}