Major rPET project launches across the EU
12/07/2022
Under the WhiteCycle banner, instigated by French tyre manufacturer Michelin, the goal is to facilitate the recycling of at least 2 million tons of PET each year by 2030, in line with the European Union (EU)’s own objectives. Expected results include an annual reduction of carbon dioxide emissions by roughly 2 million tons and the diversion of over 1.8 million tons of plastic from landfill or incineration, also by the close of the decade.
In no particular order, the organisations involved are industrial partners Michelin, Inditex and Mandals; waste management companies Synergies TLC and Estato; intelligent sorting software company Iris; biological recycling start-up Carbios; PET processing plant Kordsa; product lifecycle analysis firm iPoint; research institutions Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence on Sustainable Development (ERASME), Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL), Institut Pprime, German Institutes of Textile and Fibre Research (DITF Denkendorf), Instituto Fundación Teófilo Hernando and the University of Poitiers; competitiveness cluster Axelera; and project management consultancy Dynergie.
The project will specifically look to establish sorting technologies capable of boosting the plastic content of complex waste streams “considerably”, as well as build in a pre-process for PET ahead of enzymatic recycling (using Carbios technology), prior to repolymerisation of the resulting pure monomers. A yet unspecified system of quality verification concerning the recycled PET (rPET) will also be developed.
Horizon Europe, a research and innovation funding scheme operated by the European Commission, has already shown its support of WhiteCycle by providing almost €7.1 million or $7.1 million of the total €9.6 million ($9.6 million) budget.
The 17-strong consortium – based across France, Spain, Germany, Norway and Turkey – will be guided by a steering committee, a centre synergy commission and a technical support committee.
Image: Carbios.
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