Südpack acquires majority stake in chemical recycler

Iranpolymer/Baspar German flexible film manufacturer Südpack has acquired a majority stake in Carboliq. The Germany-based chemical recycler is a subsidiary of engineering firm Recenso, specialised in resource recovery systems.

With the acquisition, effective from Jan. 2, 2024, Südpack has expanded its involvement in Carboliq, in which it had already invested in 2021.
Südpack says it is now the only manufacturer of flexible films with direct access to capacities for chemical recycling. “We believe quite profoundly in the benefits of this [chemical recycling] technology compared to other oiling processes,” said Dirk Hardow, the newly appointed director of Carboliq. “In terms of energy consumption and the processing window for a broad range of recyclables, Carboliq technology offers significant advantages in comparison to other processes from our point of view.”

Carboliq technology is based on a process of Catalytic Tribochemical Conversion (CTC) – a one-stage direct liquefaction process, that involves the combined application of thermal, catalytic and mechanochemical mechanisms. CTC is applied at atmospheric pressure and at process temperatures below 400C. The process, during which almost no gasses are formed, produces a high ratio of oil, which is collected in a condensing system. Briquets, suitable for roast firing applications, are made from the residues.

The main advantage of Carboliq technology over other pyrolysis processes, according to Südpack, is its flexibility regarding infeed materials, which do not necessarily have to be based on polyolefins. Due to its high feedstock tolerance, Carboliq is also suitable for converting flexible packaging and highly complex multilayer films into oil, in addition to contaminated, mixed, or other plastics.

Pilot projects are undergoing at the Carboliq subsidiary at Ennigerloh, near Münster, where Recenso operates an industrial-scale pilot plant. Complex laminated packaging films from Südpack have been successfully regenerated into what Recenso describes as a ‘high quality liquid resource suitable for the production of new virgin quality polymers’, distributed under the name ‘Circular Liquid Resource’ (CLR). Under continuous operation, the pilot plant is currently designed to provide an annual output of approximately 10,000 tonnes.

“We expect chemical recycling to play a key role in the context of the upcoming PPWR (Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation), not least to make it possible to meet the required recyclate use rates, particularly in the manufacturing of food packaging,” Hardow predicted.

Whether the current draft of the PPWR, approved by the European Parliament and Council, recognises pyrolysis-based chemical recycling is highly contentious. The new version incorporates the European Parliament Committee on Environment’s (ENVI) proposed rewording of the definition of recycling, which appears to re-add the ambiguity for pyrolysis-based chemical recycling on whether pyrolysis oil would count towards the targets that exists in current recycling definitions under EU law. The future of chemical recycling in Europe thus hangs in the balance of how definitions are interpreted and enforced.

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