Schneider Electric, recognized as the world's most sustainable company and a leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, has teamed up with GR3N, a recycler specializing in Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) chemicals. Together, they are creating the first open automation system tailored for the advanced plastic recycling industry.

Source: PR Newswire

With 50% of global plastic waste ending up in landfills and a mere 9% being recycled, GR3N has introduced MADE, a Microwave Assisted DEpolymerization solution. This innovative process breaks down PET into its chemical building blocks, which can then be recombined to produce new PET pellets of virgin-like quality for use in packaging and textiles, effectively closing the loop for challenging-to-recycle plastics. The technology utilizes alkaline hydrolysis and can handle a higher volume of impurities compared to existing methods.

In March 2024, GR3N successfully showcased MADE alongside Schneider Electric's open automation technology, EcoStruxure Automation Expert, at its demonstration site in Italy. The MADE plant is designed to incorporate all technologies that will ultimately be used in the first industrial-scale facility, expected to be established in Spain, with a projected capacity of over 40,000 tons per year of PET waste processed. The inherent modularity of GR3N's proprietary recycling process has made MADE the first plastic recycling facility to utilize a shared automation runtime managed by Universal Automation, based on the IEC 61499 standard.

Through software-defined automation and hardware independence, we have been able to effectively de-risk our operations and push the boundaries of our technology. We've been able to reconfigure our systems quickly when we see opportunities to improve efficiency, while avoiding supply chain issues due the hardware agnostic nature of the system. This is what is needed to make advanced plastic recycling at reality at scale.

This software-defined automation system separates hardware from software, allowing for flexible connections across different architecture layers, irrespective of the equipment manufacturer. It serves as the digital backbone for industrial operations at the plant, providing the essential framework for making more informed decisions. This innovative approach positions MADE as a technological demonstration of a new generation of automation systems, where the integration of operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) enhances advanced functionalities for operations management and data analytics.

Global plastic demand is anticipated to triple by 2060, with projections indicating that the amount of plastic in the ocean will surpass that of fish. Addressing this demand while reducing pollution and achieving net zero by 2050 necessitates a revolution in consumption models.

Every year, people produce around 460 million tons of plastic, approximately 70% of which are sent to landfills or mismanaged.

The collaboration between GR3N and Schneider Electric, initiated with a Memorandum of Understanding, will empower the chemical recycler to expand its operations to new sites swiftly and economically. The solution is expected to achieve industrial scale by 2027 with the establishment of a 35-40kta plant that will incorporate pre-treatment, depolymerization, and repolymerization processes.