Almost everyone knows that we are awash with plastic waste. Waste that is rarely recycled- and if it is, it generally is only suitable for lesser applications than their original uses.
Which brings up a new term that I recently learned. “Circular polymers”. Being the chemical engineer that I am, I labored long and hard to figure out which plastics had a circular configuration.
Well, it turns out this new terminology is more related to how we recycle our polymers back into products. The conventional concept of plastics is that they manifest a linear economy- we convert raw materials (generally, petrochemicals) into products, and when we have completed that use or no longer need the product, we dispose of the plastic material as waste. To a landfill, where it stays forever.
The “circular polymer” concept means we convert raw materials into products and then reuse or remanufacture it- we actually recycle the material. And, if we do a bang up job of breaking down the plastic to its primary components, we can actually use the basic material in high quality applications (like medical products).
Moreover, let’s consider Europe right now. Where the use of Russian Natural Gas is being limited. I know y’all thought that the gas was being used for power and heat (it is), but a good portion of it was devoted to the industrial complexes- making plastics and other goods that need petrochemical raw materials.
Had we already perfected this circular polymer route, then behemoths like BASF (headquartered in Germany, but a worldwide entity) could continue producing all the products it normally does. Without relying on Russian energy supplies. (Just so you know, Europe produces about 70 million tons of plastics a year. Of that total, the bulk are polyolefins- polyethylene [30% of all plastics made in Europe for products and packaging, 40% of which end up in landfills and another 32% is mismanaged and lost somewhere.) Moreover, recycling plastics lowers our carbon dioxide emissions (i.e., lessened global warming impact).
When polyethylene and polypropylene are recycled down to virgin resin quality (the circular polymer process is called ‘circulen renew’), we can incorporate those resins to make food packaging, surface protection films, and medical devices. And, we don’t augment or use more fossil fuels or add to our carbon dioxide emissions.
So, when I tell you that ExxonMobil has just brought on board a plastic waste recycling unit at its massive Baytown (Houston) facility, this is a big deal. It’s current capacity is 30 kta (30 kilo tons a year, or 60 million pounds of recycled polyethylene [PE] and polypropylene [PP] a year- soon to be 80 million pounds a year). And, next year, in a joint venture with Plastic Energy, a 25000 metric ton [55 million pounds a year] will be operational in Notre Dame de Gravenchon (France). Exxon anticipates capacity to reach 500 kta by the end of 2026. Exxon is also examining its facilities in Louisiana (Baton Rouge) and Illinois (Joliet) to see if they can have these systems installed and running.
A pilot plant proved the processes, converting some 15 million pounds of plastics already. ExxonMobil has been certified by the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification Plus (ISCC Plus) for several of its facilities. The Baytown facility is the first scale-up from the pilot plant, where the recycled plastics are converted into a slurry that is fed to other reactors in which plastic pellets are produced to be sold to manufacturers of food and medical products.
The proprietary process, which ExxonMobil calls Extend TechnologyTM, breaks down the plastic waste to the basic components (PE or PP), which means the waste plastic is no longer heading off to a landfill or to be used to make athletic fields, bubble wrap, or motor oil containers.
Did you hear our planet emit a sigh of relief?
Today is the third day of Chanuka. Last night, we lit the three candles for the Festival of Lights. May the light bring joy and happiness to your lives.
