BASF Successfully Uses ChemCycling to Produce Pilot Products from Plastic Waste

Pilot Products
MOUNTAIN HOME AIR FORCE BASE, Idaho -- Capt. Christopher Stricklin ejects from the USAF Thunderbirds number six aircraft less than a second before it impacted the ground at an air show at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, Sept. 14. Stricklin, who was not injured, ejected after both guiding the jet away from the crowd of more than 60,000 people and ensuring he couldn't save the aircraft. This was only the second crash since the Air Force began using F-16 Falcons for its demonstration team in 1982. The ACES II ejection seat performed flawlessly. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III)

BASF announced that it has successfully created the first products under its ChemCyling project. Certain plastic wastes such as mixed or uncleaned plastics cannot be recycled and are therefore burned or buried in a landfill to produce energy. However, a ground-breaking innovation by BASF uses chemicals to recycle waste plastics to produce syngas or oil which can replace fossil fuels. Under the procedure, BASF subjected plastic wastes to thermochemical processes to produce oil and syngas. BASF stated that it is already offering the products from their ChemCycling procedures to companies working in waste management, packaging, and technology.

Using the fossil fuels obtained from chemically recycling plastics, BASF is already producing fridge components, mozzarella packaging, and insulation panels. The German giants are supplying the products obtained from recycling the plastics to ten companies across different sectors. The syngas and oil produced from the subjection of plastic waste to the ChemCylcing have exactly the same properties as fossil fuels which is the reason why products manufactured using them meet the high-quality and hygienic standards laid down in the industry.

BASF’s Verbund production has further provided the company a great opportunity to utilize the products from ChemCycling. The company used the oil produced from the recycling procedure to feed its steam cracker installed at its Ludwigshafen site in October. The heat produced from the oil is used to break down the raw material required in the production of Verbund. The process outputs ethylene and propylene as the major chemical products which are further used to develop an array of chemicals.

However, the company stated that the products from recycled plastic are yet not ready for market production and delivery as certain technological and regulatory conditions must be met. The company suggested that the manufacturing processes which will utilize the plastic-based fossil fuels would need to be modified in order to assure consistent production of high-quality goods. Further, the regional regulations laid down in different parts of the world will largely influence how the idea of developing such advanced technology shapes up.

BASF further shed light on how the plastics have become a part and parcel of almost every industry due to its technical utility in medical, technological, and everyday life applications. In line with its vision, the company is working with multiple national and international firms and is promoting efficient management of plastic wastes. With increasing consumer preference for products that promote environmental preservation, BASF’s ChemCycling project is expected to garner huge popularity in the foreseeable future.

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