Chemical recycling

Chemical recycling by pyrolysis: under normal atmospheric conditions without the participation of oxygen thermal processes cause the decomposition of the plastic polymer chain into smaller parts, where arises recycled / a mixture of liquid hydrocarbons, which is then used as a raw material for the petrochemical industry to produce new organic products or as a substitute for liquid fuels  obtained by oil refining.

What are the benefits of chemical recycling Eurex Eco-01

• The facility does not burden the environment with a large amount of exhaust fumes and greenhouse gases, on the contrary, there is also a significant reduction in the carbon footprint that would arise during the extraction of oil and its primary processing

• our technology can make a significant contribution to the treatment of difficult-to-recycle plastic waste, and the recycled output serves as a substitute for primary fossil raw materials in the production process of new plastic products.

• the use of final products in chemical recycling is incomparably greater than in mechanical recycling (95 % : 10 % ).

• a significant part of mixed plastic waste cannot be mechanically recycled. Recycling efficiency is 95 % : 50 % in favor of chemical recycling.

The process of chemical recycling is practically self-sufficient in energy. External energy is only required by the process to drive electrical equipment.

In the pyrolysis process, plastics are broken down into a range of basic hydrocarbons by heating in the absence of oxygen, or ‘cracking’ (sometimes referred to as thermal cracking). By utilising a distillation process, the hydrocarbon vapour can then be made into products ranging from heavy wax and oils to light oils and gas. It is possible to skew the production from heavier to lighter by adjusting process time and temperature. Heavier output products can also be reintroduced into the process for additional cracking into lighter products.

Pyrolysis products can be processed in much the same way as oil, using conventional refining technologies to produce building blocks for polymers. Alternatively, they can be used directly as a fuel.

Using pyrolysis to make feedstock for polyethylene and polypropylene production could fill a large processing gap as polyethylene and polypropylene cannot be depolymerised directly into monomers. Further, the plastic produced would be virgin-quality polymers and could be used in all the same applications (e.g., food packaging).

Pyrolysis production can be enhanced using catalytic degradation, where a suitable catalyst is used to promote the cracking reaction. The presence of a catalyst allows reaction temperature and time to be lowered. The process results in a much narrower product distribution of carbon atom number and increases lighter hydrocarbon production. This helps to increase the proportion of the output product for use in making more plastics.

Target Feedstock

• Polyolefins [Polyethylene (PE), Polypropylene (PP), Polybutylene (PB)] 
• Polystyrene (PS)
• PMMA (poly-methymethacrylate) - acrylic glass