Recycling of packaging materials

Packaging recycling in a closed-loop process

The recycling of multilayer packaging materials that are used to effectively protect products is a huge challenge for recycling companies. The different materials must first be separated and then individually processed. A closed-loop process is hardly possible with conventional recycling methods.

Separate and clean multilayer packaging with solvent based recycling

Our solvent based recycling process enables both post-consumer packaging and post-industrial waste to be recycled in a closed-loop process. The process can be customized for the particular composition of the waste materials. It dissolves the target polymers as mono-materials from the mixed plastics or composites and processes these into high-quality regranulates. These can then be used, for example, for the manufacture of new packaging materials. Recycling quotas for composite packaging and multilayer films can thus be significantly increased.

Recycling plants for solvent based processes

The solvent-based process has already been scaled up to a technical industrial scale, but has not yet been implemented on a commercial scale (approx. 10,000 tons per year). A first demonstration plant was put into operation in Indonesia in 2018. Following successful commissioning and demonstration campaigns in 2019 and early 2020, the plant has been running continuously in 1- or 2-shift operation ever since.

Further production campaigns were carried out on a demonstation plant of Lömi GmbH, for example as part of the EU project Multicycle (Grant No. 820695) or as part of the BMBF project Circular Packaging (FKZ 033R198). The system know-how and production experience form a secure basis for the further upscaling of the technology to a commercial scale. This is being done in close cooperation with our license partner and plant manufacturer GAW/Lömi.

Our team is happy to support these next forward-looking steps in the planning phase and on site with our broad process expertise and extensive knowledge of the waste and plastic packaging market. We are convinced that solvent-based recycling technology offers an environmentally friendly and sustainable closed-loop solution for high-quality multilayer packaging.