Mura Technology has partnered with engineering company KBR and Mitsubishi's chemicals arm to develop its first hydrothermal plastic recycling technology project (Hydro-PRT) in Japan.
Plastic waste. Credit: Mumtahina Tanni / Pexels
Japan currently recycles around 84% of its plastic waste, but much of it is burned and not readded into the supply chain or reused. Credit: Mumtahina Tanni / Pexels
The project, which was hastened by the Tokyo Olympics, should help reduce latent plastic waste in the country by recycling end-of-life plastic that would otherwise be incinerated, sent to landfill, or leak into the environment as pollution.
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Based at the Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation's (MCC) plant in the Ibaraki prefecture, the technology allows for waste plastic to be converted into virgin polymers and chemicals by separating them back into oil and gas.
The company claims there are no limits to how many times this can be recycled and may have uses outside of traditional commercial plastic products, such as road building materials. The process can also supposedly recycle many types of plastic that cannot be recycled through normal measures.
MCC, Kamisu-shi, Ibaraki, Japan
The project will be located at the MCC plant in Kamisu-shi, Ibaraki, Japan.
Construction on the project is expected to be complete in 2023 and should have the capacity to handle 20,000 tonnes of plastic waste per year, with plans to increase this capacity in the future.
Japan currently disposes of around 9 million tonnes of plastic waste per year, and MCC will be seeking to extend the scope of this project and target these plastics as raw materials.
Japan currently recycles around 84% of its plastic waste, but the majority is burned to create energy from waste that is not reprocessed into the plastics supply chain.
Its commitment to plastic recycling was already evident during the Tokyo Olympics, where a flagship recycling programme transformed 24.5 tonnes of plastic waste into the champions' victory podiums.
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The project will start on post-industrial plastics, but the project should be scalable to meet rising demand, Mura claims.
This is not the first collaboration between Mura and KBR, who are hoping to utilise the hydrothermal method across the globe. The two signed an agreement in January to explore opportunities in Asia, the USA and Europe.
“This the latest in a series of agreements that Mura and KBR have signed, and further underlines the vital role which Hydro-PRT will play in tackling the global plastics crisis," Mura Technology's CEO Steve McMahon said.
“Plastic waste is polluting our environment at an alarming rate, not to mention the carbon emissions caused by utilising the fossil fuels needed to make virgin plastics.
"We need global, sustainable, and scalable solutions today. That is why we are taking an international approach – to scale fast and meet the challenge head-on – and we are proud of the work that will be completed at the Ibaraki plant," he added.
Read more: Construction begins on pioneering plastic recycling plant in UK
Mura's most recent project is a Hydro-PRT plant in Teeside, in the UK, scheduled for operation in 2022.
The company says it will be looking to recycle 80,000 tonnes of plastic waste annually.
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