Plastic waste poses a significant challenge for our planet today. With projections indicating that the demand for plastic will nearly triple by 2060 compared to 2019 figures, manufacturers and recyclers are actively pursuing innovative solutions to increase plastic recycling rates and promote a circular economy.

Source: waste360

While mechanical recycling, a widely known method, effectively processes some materials, it falls short when dealing with all types of plastics. For example, plastic films used in packaging like spinach or lettuce bags, which play a crucial role in preserving freshness, are challenging to recycle.

Advanced recycling, on the other hand, can address these hard-to-recycle items by converting them into feedstock. By combining various recycling methods through hybrid recycling, a comprehensive approach can be adopted to combat plastic waste.

Benefitting from Advanced Recycling

Advanced recycling transforms plastics such as flexible films into gas or liquid raw materials that can be used to produce a wide range of plastic products designed for multiple recycling cycles. This process enables a broader spectrum of plastics, including multi-layer packaging often destined for landfills or incineration due to limited recycling options, to enter the circular economy.

While advanced recycling technology has been in existence for some time, the collaborative efforts between suppliers, manufacturers, and stakeholders are still in the early stages of development to achieve a significant impact on a larger scale.

Driving Towards a Circular Future

Dow is dedicated to fostering collaborations to enhance recycling capabilities. For instance, Dow has established a supply agreement with Freepoint Eco-Systems Supply & Trading LLC for 65,000 metric tons of circular feedstock. Freepoint Eco-Systems is constructing an advanced recycling facility in Arizona to process end-of-life plastic waste from the region, converting it into recycled pyrolysis oil.

Dow will be the exclusive recipient of the pyrolysis oil from the facility's initial phase, expected to begin by 2026. This partnership will enable Dow to transform the certified-circular liquid supply into high-quality plastics, catering to customer demands for recycled content in various applications, including food-grade and medical packaging.

By partnering with Freepoint Eco-Systems and acquiring Circulus, Dow is making significant strides toward its Transform the Waste goal of converting 3 million metric tons of circular and renewable solutions annually by 2030. These collaborations illustrate Dow's commitment to fostering innovation and developing new business models to scale up advanced and mechanical recycling systems, thereby building a sustainable materials ecosystem that maximizes the value of waste and establishes progressive recycling infrastructure for plastics.