Welcome to the Plastics Weekly, NEO’s regular news monitoring of the plastics industry.
This week’s highlights:
- The U.S.-based Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) has published a report exploring the potential of pyrolysis for recycling residential film and flexible packging (FFP). The report’s findings show that scaling the recycling of residential FFP back into recycled plastic is feasible but expensive, and would require “comprehensive and unparalleled supply chain coordination and investment.” (Sustainable Plastics)
- Researchers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) have introduced a groundbreaking low-energy methodology to recycle plastic. This process can convert various waste plastics into polymer nanoparticles in water, which can be reused or applied in industries such as asphalting and waterproofing. The new method also reportedly removes dyes from plastic waste, further streamlining the recycling process. (Packaging Gateway)
- Vienna-based Altstoff Recycling Austria (ARA) has said it is constructing a plant in Pöchlarn, Austria, for the mechanical recycling of various polyolefin waste streams. The line is set to come into operation in the summer and is designed to recover valuable materials from the various waste fractions that were previously sent to waste incineration plants. (PlastEurope)
