Fortum Recycling & Waste will start piloting the production of high-quality plastics made from CO2. The pilot, utilising CO2 captured from waste incineration, is the first of its kind globally. The decision to invest 10 million euros to the research and development of the Carbon2x technology strengthens the position of Fortum Recycling and Waste as the forerunner of CO2-based plastics.
The Carbon2x concept, launched by Fortum in April 2022, aims to recycle unrecyclable waste by capturing the CO2 emissions of waste incineration and return the captured CO2 back to the material circulation in the form of high-quality plastics.
The first phase of Carbon2x piloting conducted at Fortum’s Riihimäki waste-to-energy plant was successful in capturing CO2 from the flue gases of waste incineration and combining the CO2 with hydrogen to produce methane, an important intermediary step in producing materials of higher value such as plastics.
“The results of our first trials have been very encouraging, proving that CO2 emissions of waste incineration can be used to make new materials, and therefore we have decided to invest in upscaling the project. In the next phase, we aim to produce plastics made from CO2 captured from waste incineration. To our knowledge, we are the first company in the world to test this in practice,” says Tony Rehn, Program Director at Fortum Recycling and Waste.
“We are particularly interested in producing premium quality plastics to be used in for example food and cosmetics packaging, toys, and home electronics. With this, we want to help reduce the dependence on fossil-based raw materials and close the loop in waste incineration for good,” Rehn continues.
The pilot will be conducted with several industrial-scale containers located at Fortum’s Riihimäki site, containing the required technology and materials. Due to the novelty of Fortum Recycling & Waste’s research, a critical part of the research and development has also been the design and innovation for the needed laboratory and piloting equipment.
Carbon recycling can be a sustainable way to produce climate-friendly plastic
According to research, the global demand for plastics is expected to grow threefold by 2050, and there are still very few worthy alternatives to plastic in many industries such as pharmaceutical and food industry. Today, 90% of plastics is produced from fossil feedstock such as oil. To combat climate change, reducing the use of virgin fossil feedstock is of vital importance. To achieve this, new solutions are needed to complement mechanical recycling. Capturing and recycling carbon from waste incineration form a part of this solution.
“Every year, Europeans generate nearly 100 million tonnes of unrecycled waste that is turned into energy. Incineration is an important part of the current waste management system, but it also causes emissions. We believe that also emissions can and must be turned into new raw materials,” says Timo Piispa, Senior Vice President of Fortum’s Circular Solutions.
“Adopting the Carbon2x concept at a large scale means that 90% of the carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere from waste incineration could be captured and absorbed into products.”
In addition to Finland, Fortum has waste incineration plants in Denmark and Sweden, as well as under construction in the UK. The Carbon2x technology could be used at these sites in the future, as well.
Fortum Recycling and Waste plans to continue upscaling the Carbon2x project step by step towards industrial-level production capacity before the end of the decade. The next phase of the pilot will take around two years, but the first samples of the plastic material are expected to be published already at the end of summer 2024.
More information:
Tony Rehn, Carbon2x Programme Director, tony [dot] rehn [at] fortum [dot] com, +358404855857
Maiju Daniel-Huhtaniska, Communications & Marketing Manager, maiju [dot] daniel-huhtaniska [at] fortum [dot] com, +358503502861