Page 168 - CW E-Magazine (26-9-2023)

News from Abroad

CHEMICAL RECYCLING

Plastic Energy commissions new pilot plant at R&D

labs in UK

Plastic Energy, the UK-based chemi-
cal recycling technology specialist, has
commissioned a new pilot plant in its
research & development labs in Lough-
borough University Science & Enter-
prise Park (LUSEP) in the UK.

The new pilot plant will be used to
further develop and optimise Plastic
Energy’s chemical recycling techno-
logy, by testing the company’s output,
called Tacoil, and improving the quality
of the final product. Plastic Energy has
been based at the University of Lough-
borough for over a decade and opened lity to make adjustments within the pilot ues to expand globally, the pilot plant
new labs in November last year. plant will make it easier to optimise the will be instrumental in helping Plastic
efficiency and design of Plastic Energy’s Energy to test new feedstocks, further
The pilot plant, which will use Plas- new projects going forward. scale up its process and optimise our
tic Energy’s patented recycling technol- chemical recycling technology.”
ogy, will follow the same TAC process Mr. David McNamara, Chief Tech-
used at its larger plants. Plastic waste nology Officer at Plastic Energy, ex- In parallel, Plastic Energy has also
is heated in the absence of oxygen and plained, “Commissioning our first ever been leading work on a digital twin of
converted into Tacoil, which is used as pilot plant at our R&D labs in Lough- the pilot plant, helping the team to gather
a replacement for fossil oils in the cre- borough is an important milestone for data on the performance of recycling
ation of new plastics. Having the abi- the company. As Plastic Energy contin- plants currently under construction.

CIRCULAR ECONOMY
Braskem inks deal to secure plastic-waste-derived

feedstock in Europe

Brazil’s Braskem and Swiss-based recycling. It enables plastic waste unfit tegy. Adopting initiatives that include
Dutch multinational energy and com- for mechanical recycling to be recove- plastic waste recovery, and mechanical,
modity trading company, Vitol S.A., red and turned into valuable raw mate- and chemical recycling in our produc-
have announced a sourcing agreement rials for the chemical industry, an alter- tion processes is connected to our com-
for circular feedstock derived from native to fossil fuel-based feedstock. pany’s purpose to provide a more circu-
plastic waste. Under the agreement, Vitol The agreement with Vitol helps Braskem lar and sustainable future. We believe
will start to supply Braskem Nether- increase the circularity of its products that Vitol’s infrastructure and expertise
lands B.V. with pyrolysis oil produced around the world. By 2030, Braskem combined with WPU’s plastic waste
in the chemical recycling process at the plans to sell 1-mtpa of products with recycling technology will enable Bras-
facilities of Waste Plastic Upcycling recycled material and recover 1.5-mtpa kem to take an important step towards
A/S (WPU), in Denmark. of plastic from the environment. developing sustainable solutions for
our clients,” said Mr. Walmir Soller, VP
Chemical recycling is a complemen- “The circular economy is an objec- of Olefins and Polyolefins at Braskem
tary process to traditional mechanical tive linked to Braskem’s business stra- Europe & Asia.

168 Chemical Weekly September 26, 2023

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