Ascend achieves full chemical recycling of nylon 6/6

Iranpolymer/Baspar  Philadelphia — Ascend Performance Materials has achieved full chemical recycling of nylon 6/6 materials.

Ascend reached that milestone in mid-2024 at its production site in Pensacola, Fla., Chief Technology Officer Vikram Gopal said March 4 at Antec 2025 in Philadelphia.

Gopal described the project as “the first world-scale fiber-to-fiber recycling option with nylon 6/6 and nylon 6/6 fiber blends.”

The process turns nylon fiber into recycled-content resins with performance similar to that of virgin material, he added. “For the first time, this system takes recycling, sustainability and performance and makes it all a reality,” Gopal said.

The process developed by Houston-based Ascend has been scaled up to a commercial level. Materials produced by the process can be drop-in replacements for virgin material, according to Gopal. The recycled-content nylon 6/6 can be customized as well, he added.

Full nylon 6/6 recycling “has been a challenge that the industry has been trying to meet for 20 or 30 years,” Gopal said. “We’re very excited to reach this breakthrough.”

The process also reduces the need for new supplies of feedstocks such as adipic acid and HMD.

On the overall topic of sustainability, Gopal said “it’s not something sold by one company or one player — it has to be used across the entire value chain.”

Ascend aims to have its carbon footprint reduced by 90 percent vs. 2018 levels by 2030. The firm has spent more than $200 million on sustainability efforts over the last several years.

Ascend is the world’s largest fully integrated nylon 6/6 maker. The firm has annual sales of more than $3 billion and is a unit of New York-based investment firm SK Capital Partners.

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