- A PS recycling pilot plant will be built in the UK in 2022.
- Commercial plants in France and Belgium aim to be operational by 2023.
- Each plant will convert 15kT/y of PS waste into recycled styrene.
- Recycling Technologies was chosen for its high yield and scalable solution.
Project Milestone
INEOS Styrolution, Recycling Technologies, and Trinseo have reached a significant milestone in their plans to build commercial polystyrene (PS) recycling plants in Europe. Recycling Technologies has been selected as the technology partner.
Technology and Process
The companies aim to make PS a circular material through depolymerisation, returning PS waste to its chemical building blocks before polymerising it again. The recycled PS will have properties identical to virgin PS, with life cycle assessments showing significant decreases in greenhouse gas emissions compared to PS production from naphtha.
Pilot Plant
A PS recycling pilot plant will be built in the UK in 2022. This pilot plant will provide data related to chemical recycling and operations, supporting the development of future commercial-scale recycling plants.
Commercial Facilities
INEOS Styrolution plans to build its full commercial-scale recycling facility in Wingles, France, while Trinseo will build its plant in Tessenderlo, Belgium, expected to be operational in 2023. Each plant aims to convert 15kT/y of PS waste into recycled styrene.
Technology Selection
Recycling Technologies was chosen as the technology provider after a detailed assessment of technology options. Their solution provided the highest yields in converting PS to styrene monomer and offered the most scalable solution due to their fluidised bed reactor and skilled technical team.
