GAIKER profundiza en la tecnología de pirólisis para el tratamiento circular de residuos plásticos complejos

The UPPLAST project seeks to promote the circular economy to transform plastic waste that is difficult to treat into new circular plastics.

The shortage of raw materials and the current pressure on this market are the reasons why the GAIKER Technology Centre, a member of the Basque Research & Technology Alliance, BRTA, is launching the project “Activation of the circular economy of plastic waste by upgrading products derived from thermochemical technologies”, UPPLAST.

UPPLAST is researching new technologies to take advantage of complex waste with a high plastic content and transform it into new plastics or high-value chemical products. The main objective of this project is to contribute to the Basque industrial fabric to the implementation and commercial exploitation of the circular treatment of waste and rejects with a high plastic content by means of chemical recycling with selective pyrolysis. In short, the aim is to promote the circular economy and to deepen the Plastic2Plastic concept, for which different key points of pyrolysis technology will be explored in depth, including the treatment of waste that is highly mixed with PVC and halogenated additives and metals, the production of pyrolysis oils free of chlorine and solids with low volatile and inorganic content, the recirculation of waxes and the continuous feeding of materials of different morphologies and densities, the upgrading of oils to increase their quality and the control and monitoring of all reaction products.

Furthermore, this project aims to implement the processes developed in optimised, efficient and viable plants, as this is what is currently demanded by the eco-industry, engineering, refineries and petrochemical companies.

This research, financed by the Provincial Council of Bizkaia as part of its Technology Transfer 2022 programme, is divided into four phases during which the following will be carried out:
1. The different waste streams will be analysed and complex and mixed plastic waste will be characterised and conditioned.
2. Develop a pyrolysis process to treat complex plastic waste from sorting rejects of light packaging waste, industrial plastics and surplus polypropylene and polyethylene from production lines.
3. Product quality control tools will be investigated and advanced purification processes will be developed.
4. Study the main plastic waste streams in the Basque Country that are currently not being adequately recovered.