Ioniqa scores ‘Strong Positive’ Lux Research score

Lux Research Inc. has assessed Ioniqa Technologies at its highest score: ‘Strong Positive’.

Charles Willard, Analyst at Lux Research, clarified: “Ioniqa's differentiated technology has made it a leading contender and any clients interested in licensing a PET depolymerisation technology should engage.”

Ioniqa is the first of numerous new chemical recyclers to reach an industrial scale. Their production at a new facility in the Netherlands is being optimised and ramped up to the full 10,000 tpa capacity over the next year.

Brand owners including like Coca-Cola and Unilever have acknowledged that Ioniqa’s industrial plant is a step toward long-term sustainability goals. Willard added: “Ioniqa's catalyst selectivity gives it an advantage in the race toward also valorizing polyester textile waste streams for foodsafe materials.”

Ioniqa has developed a catalytically accelerated process to produce virgin quality raw materials for food-grade PET packaging. The key component of Ioniqa’s process is an in-house formulated catalyst which overcomes several common process issues. Ioniqa’s process allows for the upcycling of low-end feedstock currently not being recycled, like coloured bottles, multi-layer food and non-food materials.

Ioniqa ceo Tonnis Hooghoudt added: “Wouldn’t it be great to reduce plastic waste instead of growing it? With our ground-breaking technology in the near future we plan to tap into larger PET waste markets including textiles in the future. This breakthrough saves tremendous amounts of oil and reduces CO2 with up to 75 per cent. At the request of large brands, we [have] already created food-safe mayonnaise bottles from black sport-shirts, and have plans to demonstrate textiles as feedstock for food-safe packaging at large-scale, continuous operations.”