A new version added in recycling – Chemical recycling

First, of this kind, Henkel has created bottles using chemically recycled plastic jointly with packaging company Alpla. 

Because, chemical recycling, mixed plastic scrap that was previously impracticable to convert effectively, reprocessed and reused. The pilot project taken with bottles of Perwoll is part of the ChemCycling project led by BASF.

“There is a tremendous potential for chemical recycling to add extra conventional mechanical recycling,” said Dr. Thorsten Leopold, Head of Packaging Development Home Care at Henkel. 

Chemical recycling complement mechanical recycling

“Mechanical recycling is restricted by the reality that not all plastic waste can be reprocessed into useable stuff. It needs chemical recycling; fossil supplies can replace with recycled material produced from plastic waste. This project is an essential further step towards generating a circular economy for plastic – on this basis, and we are assessing further possibilities for integrating chemically recycled plastic for our packed packaging.”

“With this chemical recycling, the same plastic recovered within the material cycle – the carbon includes can thereby be reused. So, chemical recycling could complement mechanical recycling. The quality of the materials examined has assured us,” said Nicolas Lehner, Chief Commercial Officer for Alpla.

“The pilot project with Henkel’s Perwoll bottle has confirmed that products produced using chemically recycled raw materials claim the equivalent quality and performance as products produced of fossil materials. With ChemCycling, the balance of recycled material that continues into the production process is allotted to the end product by the Mass Balance method. This can assist our consumers in achieving their sustainability goals,” said Anja Winkler, BASF Head of Global Key Account Management Henkel Home & Personal Care.

Chemical recycling is a valuable addition

Mechanical recycling includes grinding, washing, and reprocessing segregated plastic scrap back into granulate form. The difficulty inherent to this process is that the feature of the resulting recycled product can only be as useful as that of the “input material.” Unclean plastic, as well as shade and a mix of plastic, can negatively affect the quality of the recycled product and get the recycling method more difficult. 

As a part of @BASF pilot project ChemCycling, member company @Henkel has developed a new Perwoll bottle from chemically recycled plastic. #EndPlasticWaste https://t.co/cHVuvkry4F

— Alliance To End Plastic Waste (@EndPlasticWaste) November 27, 2019