K2019 Preview
Circular economy: a “friend” of the plastic world Plastic waste is deemed as the greatest enemy of the environment this century. But this waste problem can be solved, through the concept of circular economy. In a series of press conferences held in June/July, companies reasoned on the sustainability issue, which will play a central role at the K2019 exhibition to be held from 16-23 October 2019 in Düsseldorf/Germany.
The big guns recognise the weak links With quotes like “plastics are still the future”, “sustainability is a source of innovation” and “there are ways to create value in plastic waste” being thrown around in a roomful of journalists, the circular economy will be a major focus of K2019. And various suggestions were offered to boost recycling. Thorsten Kühmann, Managing Director of VDMA Plastics and Rubber Machinery Association Germany, proposed the introduction of standards for recycled materials, adding that the process is less reliable because of this, adding that separate collection systems will ensure that different plastics need not be separated by a recycling company, which itself wastes a lot of water and energy doing the process. With networking waste management and recycling in production a core aspect of the circular economy, at present, this part is still in its infancy. “The main problems are various players and groups, which obstruct the introduction of a functioning circular economy,” Henning Wilts, expert for Circular Economy at the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy explained. He identifies a lack of cooperation to promote a crosscompany network of collection, recycling and production. There is little or no exchange of data among companies. For example, at present, producers have no way of knowing which polymer material the recycler is generating at any given time, which means that they cannot plan the quantities they will receive. Also, the individual areas of the cycle are usually subject to completely different legal regulations. “The systems have developed separately over decades. Bringing them together is a major challenge,” Wilts adds. The EU Commission also maintains that a circular economy for plastics will improve competitiveness and therefore considers it a real economic benefit, and which will encourage other countries to follow suit. The first country to do so will become a role model, it says. Retaining the value of plastics by reusing and treating the waste as a resource is also a convincing argument for those countries that are faced with the problems of plastic waste, says VDMA. Having said this, some positive initiatives are already underway. For instance, the member states of the European Union are obliged to achieve a collection rate of 90% for disposable plastic bottles by 2025. However, much more tangible measures are required, such as setting margins for the use of recycled material in production or defining a fixed amount of electricity that must be generated by plastic waste incineration.
Tie-ups to effect circularity Polymer supplier Borealis and recycling equipment maker Erema are to work together to advance mechanical recycling technologies. They will use their respective expertise for joint tests, trial runs and pilot projects and also aim to enhance recycling processes “to satisfy increasing market demand for higherquality recyclate used in high-end applications”. They will explore the potential of increasing plant size and total production volumes to ensure reliable market availability. In recent years, Borealis has also expanded its sphere of activity beyond virgin polyolefins by entering the field of mechanical plastics recycling. It acquired German mechanical plastics recycler mtm plastics in 2016 and Austrian recycler Ecoplast in 2018. Both companies also have long-established ties to Erema. Manfred Hackl, CEO Erema (left) with Meanwhile, Borealis, subsidiary polymer maker Borouge and sister Günter Stephan, Head of Mechanical company Nova Chemicals also share a commitment in Project STOP, which Recycling, Borealis, represented both companies at a signing of the cooperation was co-founded by Borealis and SYSTEMIQ in 2017. The two companies have since been joined by Borouge and Nova. of the firms on the circular economy AUGUST 2019
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