At the Cleantech Open National Finals, I discovered a company called Rheaโs Factory. I admit, I hadnโt spent much time focused on plastic recycling, but a conversation with the company helped educate me, and piqued my curiosity.
I learned a few important things:
โถ There are two types of recycling: mechanical and chemical.
โถ ๐ ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ๐ป๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐น ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ฐ๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด is a physical process that involves cleaning, drying, and grinding recycled material to produce recycled pellets. Mechanical recycling results in a reduction in quality but itโs the only commercially viable game in town.
โถ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐บ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐น ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ฐ๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด breaks down recycled materials back into base chemicals and chemical feedstock. It results in virgin-quality material and has the potential to improve recycling rates and divert plastic waste from landfills and incineration. The catch: chemical recycling is currently energy intensive, has a high carbon footprint, and doesnโt scale. In other words โ itโs not ready for prime time.
Thatโs the problem Rheaโs Factory is attempting to solve. And I hope that they and others achieve the goal of making chemical recycling a reality because – to put it kindly – the current approach is less than ideal.
In any case, Rheaโs prompted me to better understand the state of plastic recycling. What Iโve found opened my eyes. If you want your eyes opened to the state of global plastic recycling check out todayโs presentation.
#plasticwaste #plasticrecycling #plastic #singleuseplastic
