New nylon 6.6 recycling process
22/05/2025
The company drew on its prior experience in the chemical recycling of nylon 6 (to retrieve caprolactam) to develop this new method. The company said it had developed a proprietary technology to suppress side reactions, making it possible to efficiently recover high yields of hexamethylenediamine and adipic acid monomers, used to make nylon 6.6. It believes this method can halve carbon dioxide emissions of polyamide 6.6 production compared with petroleum-based sources.
Demand for nylon 66 is estimated at 100,000 tonnes annually in Japan and 1.3 million tonnes worldwide. Due to its resistance to heat and tearing, it is used to make airbags and tyre cords. Toray said that stricter recycling regulations for automotive and other plastics in Japan have made it mandatory to collect used nylon 6.6-based airbags, making it a promising source of feedstock for the company’s new technology.
This year, Toray said it will be assessing the technology and evaluating its efficiency with customers, before the possible launch of mass production in around 2030, when new thresholds for plastic recycling regulations are expected to come into force.
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