SÜDPACK and Clean Cycle have signed an agreement for a long-term investment in the unique CARBOLIQ technology developed by Recenso.
With the operation of the pilot plant at the disposal center in Ennigerloh, SÜDPACK and CARBOLIQ have proved that numerous material fractions as well as mixed and contaminated plastic wastes can be converted into a valuable resource. Apart from the large diversity of input materials, the CARBOLIQ process offers competitive advantages in terms of energy efficiency and low emissions. The oil recovered is virgin-grade quality and can be used by the plastics industry in the same way as fossil fuels to produce a wide spectrum of plastic granulates. These granulates can in turn be processed to produce high-performance films for sophisticated packaging applications which are required above all in the food industry.
So far, the cooperation partners have successfully applied the technology both for resource recovery from their own recyclable material flows as well as for recycling packaging materials from processing and from end customers. The Recenso plants for direct oiling work according to the catalytic tribochemical conversion (CTC) process and are unique in the world.
The investment in CARBOLIQ creates a powerful company that will in the medium term continually expand its capacities for highly efficient recycling of a wide variety of plastics.
Explains Christian Haupts, CEO CARBOLIQ: “Fundamentally, our joint vision is tackling the problem of high-performance flexible packaging materials that can’t be mechanically recycled with current technology. We aim to make them recyclable and therefore compatible with future needs. Thanks to the investment by SÜDPACK and Clean Cycle, we’ll be able to create a closed-loop, high-performance and industrial-standard system that also handles these products. It will allow us to exploit the extremely promising potential of our technology.”
Added Dirk Hardow, Business Unit Manager, SÜDPACK: “In a wide range of applications, for example in the food industry, high-performance multilayer films with effective protective functions are the most efficient solutions for keeping all kinds of food fresh. And they’ll remain the best choice in the future. That’s because they provide maximum product protection at minimum added weight. However, the drawback is that they can’t be mechanically recycled. Now CARBOLIQ offers a key system component for creating a circular economy in the food packaging industry which can’t be achieved solely with mechanical recycling, also due to existing legislation. So we see our investment in CARBOLIQ as an opportunity for SÜDPACK to expand the definition of plastic waste recycling beyond just mechanical recycling.” For more visit suedpack.de/en
