Plastic Energy and Axens are partnering with Qenos in the planning of a major circular plastics manufacturing facility in Australia, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.
Plastic Energy and Axens will support the recently announced Qenos and Cleanaway joint feasibility study for the conversion of up to 100,000 t of household soft plastic waste and mixed plastics back into circular polyethylene.
Circular plastics manufacturing using advanced recycling takes soft plastics and other hard-to-recycle plastic waste, which currently goes to landfill, incineration or escapes into the environment and recycles this back into the same products. It is the next major phase in recycling, and is forecast to attract USD680 B of investment globally by 2050.
Circular polyethylene has identical properties to virgin polyethylene and can be used in food contact and high-performance applications thereby supporting local packaging and food manufacturers to achieve the 2025 APCO national packaging targets.
The QCPP is the largest proposed circular plastics project in Australia, and is currently being considered for support under the Federal Government’s modern manufacturing initiative.
The joint feasibility study is expected to be completed by July 2022 and a FID to be made later this year. Pending a successful outcome, the first of the advanced recycling facilities is expected to be operational by 2025. Fully commissioned, the QCPP would secure a leadership role for the Australian manufacturing chain in this emerging global sector.
As per MRC, Axens and Univation Technologies have entered into a cooperation agreement to develop improved capital and operating efficiencies for the production of on-purpose linear alpha olefins (LAO)—including both butene-1 and hexene-1—for use in manufacturing polyethylene resins with the UNIPOL PE process. The alliance is expected to identify and deliver quantifiable synergies to benefit polyethylene producers globally for new UNIPOL PE projects as well as provide for retrofit opportunities for UNIPOL PE plants already in operation.
As per MRC, Axens launched new P/PR 200 Series of its catalyst technology. This year, Axens celebrated the tenth anniversary of Symphony, Axens’ suite of high performance reforming catalysts, which gave Axens a unique position in reforming technology. Symphony consists in industrially proven, high-performance, top-stability reforming catalysts together with an outstanding hydrothermal resistance, covering continuous catalyst regeneration (CCR), semi-regenerative and cyclic applications.
MRC