BP to build Illinois pilot plant to recycle PET plastics

BP has announced it plans to build a $25 million pilot plant in Illinois to recycle currently unrecyclable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics, Kallanish Energy reports.

The plant in Naperville, west of Chicago, is expected to be operational in late 2020, the company said in last week’s announcement. Full-scale commercialization of the enhanced recycling technology will come later, it said.

The oil supermajor said it has developed a new technology, BP Infinia, that will keep PET plastics out of landfills and transform them into new virgin-quality feedstocks.

The technology involves chemically converting complex PET plastic waste back to original monomer feedstocks through a depolymerization process.

“We see our Infinia technology as a game-changer for the recycling of PET plastics,” said Tufan Erginbilgic, BP’s Downstream chief executive, in a statement.

“It is an important stepping stone in enabling a stronger circular economy in the polymer industry and helping to reduce unmanaged plastic waste,” he said.

PET is one of the most commonly used plastics for beverage and rigid food packaging.

About 27 million tons of PET are used globally every year, with roughly 23 million tons used in bottles.

BP said less than 60% of the PET used in bottles is collected for recycling and only 6% of that total makes it back into new bottles.

The new technology could divert billions of colored PET bottles and food trays from landfills and incinerators, BP said.