Mitsui Chemicals (Tokyo; www.mitsuichemicals.com) said it plans to use pyrolysis oil derived from plastic waste and supplied by compatriot recycling company CFP (Hiroshima; www.cfp-eco.com) as feedstock for its local cracker in Osaka starting in Q1 2024.

 

The company said it intends to become the first in the country to begin manufacturing and marketing chemicals and plastics derived from chemical recycling. 

Related: Mitsui has commercial plans for process to recycle with microwaves

The initiative is part of Mitsui’s RePlayer concept, which aims to develop new materials, recycling systems, and value chains to help create a circular economy. The company announced in late 2021 that it was going to launch a range of bio-based hydrocarbons as part of the RePlayer initiative. 

A mass balanced approach will be applied to the materials produced by the Osaka cracker. This method attributes the renewable or recycled feedstock in a final product that also contains a proportion of virgin raw materials. 

The Japanese producer plans to obtain certification for its products under the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC; www.iscc-system.org) system, which is widely used in Europe. 

In addition, Mitsui said it was moving forward with additional recycling efforts that include improving recyclability through mechanical methods, adopting monomaterial designs, and using blockchain for better traceability of recycled products. 

As well as transforming its crackers to use biomass-based and recycled feedstocks, Mitsui also seeks to switch to ammonia and other alternative fuels to boost the sustainability of its industrial complexes.