The demand for plastics is increasing, and more and more waste is being generated. Vecoplan AG offers machines and plants that shred, convey and process primary and secondary raw materials. More and more industries are relying on plastics. Engineering thermoplastics are extremely temperature-resistant and characterised by strength and damping properties, which is why they are increasingly replacing metal in the automotive industry.
Vecoplan AG
Plastic recycling with Vecoplan technology
Martina Schmidt
Plastics are also increasingly used by beverage and food manufacturers. PET, for example, is also tough and protects food against spoilage, contamination and harmful substances. However, the more the population increases, the more plastic is produced – plastic that often ends up as waste. Against this background, the EU Commission presented its new plastics strategy in January 2018.In Europe, 41 per cent of plastic waste is incinerated, and just 31 per cent is recycled.
Martina Schmidt head of the Recycling and Waste Divison at Vecoplan, said: “The demand for recycled materials is still too low. The increasing demand for plastics can also lead to a tense supply situation. For example, delivery times for engineering plastics can be up to four months. This also increases prices. It’s an unsatisfactory situation for processing companies.”
The recycling of plastics is therefore an economical solution for companies, but the quality must be right. The purer the recyclate, the easier it can be processed.
Schmidt added: “Without consistent quality, there’s no process reliability, so we won’t have a good end product.”
Production waste in the form of purgings or rejects is therefore an economical alternative. The producing industry can directly process these into granulate and return it to the smallest possible production circuit – the granulate possesses the same quality as pure material, since contamination and material mixing are excluded. This means that no waste is produced, and the circuit is closed.Vecoplan shows exactly how the cycle can be closed and that the material quality of today’s regranulates can be almost pure. “Machine manufacturers in Europe have the world’s best technologies and the necessary process engineering know-how to produce high-quality recycled materials,” says Martina Schmidt.
