What is the plastics industry doing to improve circularity?

Solutions made circular: A round-up of this week’s news involving partnerships and in-person press events where plastics industry players promote their recycling and circularity achievements.

First up, HEXPOL TPE has entered into a collaboration with Denmark-based clean-tech manufacturer Plastix in order to grow its TPE portfolio. The new Dryflex Circular MWR TPEs contain recyclates from discarded maritime ropes.

Jill Bradford, Global Marketing Manager at HEXPOL TPE said: "What drew us to working with Plastix was the controls and quality of their products and that their work is evidence-based. They have conducted Life Cycle Assessment to provide data on the carbon footprint of their products."

Plastix CEO Hans Axel Kristensen added: “Integrating post-consumer recycled material is essential in the world’s transition to a circular economy and requires its usage in all applications possible. We are excited to be working with HEXPOL TPE to make this happen.”

Next, Norway-based recycling machinery manufacturer TOMRA held a press event during the IFAT event in Munich.

Presented by President and CEO Tove Anderson, EVP Dr Volker Rehrmann, and SVP Tom Eng, the press event was titled ‘Whatever it takes to close then loop’ -  echoing the words used by Black Widow in Avengers: Endgame. Anderson is certainly aware of her responsibility as President of one of Europe’s big hitters in the recycling sector: “We have an obligation to work with all stakeholders to reduce the mountains of waste and transform them into the valuable resources they are … We have the technology capable of maximising collection and recovery rates. We can act now, optimise waste management practices and fill existing gaps.”

Elsewhere, the RadiciGroup’s range of Renycle sustainable engineering polymers is now available on MatMatch, an online platform that helps designers and engineers search for the most suitable materials for their design needs.

The Bergamo-based materials developer is thus co-hosting a webinar alongside MatMatch for those involved or interested in sustainability in the polymer sector. RadiciGroup experts Riccardo Galeazzi and Claudio Ghilardi will discuss the new product line of recycled engineering polymers.

In a partnership littered with big-named players, Fratelli Guzzini has selected a range of INEOS Styrolution’s sustainable NAS ECO materials for its new range of drinkware solutions.

NAS ECO is a styrene methyl methacrylate (SMMA) material, which is the result of a co-operation between INEOS Styrolution and BASF. It is built on BASF’s production of styrene monomer derived from renewable feedstock based on mass balance-based processes. INEOS Styrolution uses the material as feedstock in its production of new sustainable styrenics solutions.

Klaus Ries, Vice President for BASF’s Styrenics Business Europe. “Next to raw materials based on chemically recycled feedstock, BMB is the second strong pillar for us when it comes to using alternative feedstock and contributing to the replacement of new fossil resources. It is of utmost importance for us to cooperate along the whole styrenics value chain.” 

Finally, Plastics recycling technology provider Mura Technology has received an investment of $100m (~€93m; ~£79m) from technology and engineering firm KBR to fund new worldwide projects aimed at removing a million tonnes of plastic waste from coastal areas and waterways. This waste will then be converted and upcycled into new products using Mura’s HYDRO-PRT solution.

Mura technology CEO Dr Steve Mahon said: “The investment proceeds will be used to support our first commercial-scale plant in Teesside (UK) later this year as well as fund the development of several plants in the US and Europe.  Plastic pollution is a global crisis which requires millions of tonnes of advanced recycling in order to begin to address this problem. At Mura, our goal is to design and deliver projects which provide robust risk-return profiles, which ensure investor confidence, and collaborations with partners such as KBR will allow us to achieve this as quickly and effectively as possible.”