A fine art: Chemical recycling of plastics
The government of Canada has prioritized preventing and even eliminating plastic waste and pollution in the coming years. To achieve this ambitious goal, chemical recycling methods are gaining increasing attention. These processes enable plastic waste to be returned to its basic chemical building blocks. They place high demands on pumps and valves since high temperatures, aggressive fluids and pressure fluctuations are a daily standard in this application. The solution: Technology from KSB
Innovative processes for the circular economy of the future
Chemical recycling of plastic waste comes in to play where mechanical recycling methods reach their limits, opening up completely new ways of reusing valuable resources. The three main processes involved in chemical recycling are conversion, depolymerization and dissolution. As they take different approaches to recovering raw materials, they place different demands on pumps and valves.
In conversion processes such as pyrolysis or gasification, plastic waste is converted into pyrolysis oil, basic chemical building blocks that can then be used to produce new plastics or other chemical products.
The objective of depolymerization, in contrast, is to return plastics to their original monomers. These monomers can then serve as the basis for new plastic products, creating a closed loop.
Dissolution is a physical process that has become increasingly important in recent years. Plastics are selectively dissolved by solvents in order to remove contaminants and recover high-quality polymer structures, enabling high-quality plastics to be recycled that are difficult to recycle with mechanical methods.
Maximum performance for a closed-loop circular economy
Conversion, depolymerization and dissolution processes place the highest demands on the plant equipment used. From extremely high temperatures of up to 400 °C, very high pressures and strong pressure fluctuations to aggressive chemicals, the various systems must always operate with absolute reliability under extreme conditions.
Pumps and valves from KSB offer you a range of benefits:
- Maximum safety at high temperatures: Thanks to high-quality materials and robust designs with high-precision seals, our pumps and valves ensure reliable performance and maximum safety across a wide temperature range.
- High resistance to corrosive substances: Made from corrosion-resistant materials and equipped with high-precision seals, our pumps and valves can withstand even the most demanding chemical processes.
- Maximum performance with different viscosities: Be it highly viscous fluids, solvents or reactive monomers, our pumps are optimally designed for the specific requirements of each process.
- Long service life and low operating costs: Robust materials and sophisticated designs ensure a long service life and reduce operating costs.
We close the chemical recycling loop
Thanks to decades of experience in the chemical industry, we not only offer first-class products but also tailored solutions for the complex requirements of chemical recycling. As a full-range supplier, we are able to equip entire plants with pumps, valves and automation products. We create sustainable and efficient processes for the circular economy of the future together with our customers.
One example of this is Magnochem W with integrated heat barrier which is ideal for the seal-less pumping of high-temperature fluids and perfectly designed for demanding applications where safety and reliability are paramount.
