Our Waste Plastics Recycling project aims to promote circularity of film plastics through implementing pyrolysis technology and enhanced upgrading processes. The goal is to tackle the growing quantities of non-recyclable waste plastics. By collaborating with our Partners, we have developed a process to produce a variety of high-quality chemicals and waxes with the end goal to generate new plastics and achieve circularity.
Pyrolysis involves heating plastic in the absence of oxygen to crack long polymer chains into smaller ones. The process yields a range of gas and liquid hydrocarbons which make up the synthetic crude oil product. The oil is then upgraded using bespoke technology to produce a suite of renewable chemicals and waxes for a variety of uses in multiple industries. This pyrolysis technology is a continuous process and compatible with a wide variety of polyolefin rich waste streams made up of polyethylene and polypropylene. Through careful optimisation and control of the pyrolysis conditions, the extent of cracking can be optimised around production of LPG, naphtha, distillates and waxes. This allows us to produce new plastics, completing the circular economy for polymers and flexibility to produce high-quality lubricants and waxes for multiple markets.
This project is targeting end of life waste plastic that cannot be mechanically recycled and is destined for either landfill or incineration. The collaborative effort allows us to recover the energy value within plastic waste, producing a raw material for generating new plastics and products, displacing and reducing the reliance on fossil fuels.