Italy's NextChem completes PET & textiles polyester recycling plant

14 Apr '22

2 min read

Pic: Shutterstock.com

Maire Tecnimont's energy transition technology company NextChem has completed the construction of a demonstration plant in Italy for the chemical recycling of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyester from textiles. Located in Chieti, Abruzzo Technology Park, the plant is part of the European Union’s (EU) Demeto project.

The Demeto project has been co-funded by the European Union under the Horizon 2020 programme with NextChem as coordinator of a consortium of 14 partners, covering the entire value chain (NextChem, 3V Tech, Spindox UK, Technical University of Denmark, The European Outdoor Group, EuPC, The Fricke and Mallah GmbH, gr3n, H&M Group, Neogroup, Recuprenda, Petcia, Supsi and Synesis).

The depolymerisation technology adopted, based on the reaction of alkaline hydrolysis with the use of microwaves, allows the plant to chemically recycle PET and polyester textile fibre waste and obtain pure monomers to produce new polymers, the company said in a media release.

NextChem is the developer and co-licensor of the depolymerisation technology, owned by the Swiss start-up Gr3n, as well as the designer and constructor of the plant. Various types of materials, including polyester-based textile fibres, will be tested in the plant, which is capable of recycling almost 100 per cent of the incoming material, amounting to one million kilogrammes/year.

This technology could contribute to the solution of some unresolved problems in textile waste recycling, such as mixed fibres. In Italy, tracked textile waste amounted to 157.7 Kt in 2019, of which 47 per cent consisted of single and mixed synthetic fibres. In Italy 5.7 per cent of unsorted waste is composed of textiles with a total estimated at 663 Kta. In Europe, each inhabitant uses 26 kg of textile material each year and disposes of 11 kg, with a total production of textile waste estimated at about 5 Mt per year.

"NextChem is very proud to have built this plant in Italy, Europe, particularly at a time when national systems for the collection and recycling of textile waste are beginning to be created, in Italy and in other European countries, in order to comply with legislation. NextChem is convinced that this technology can contribute to improve a circular economy model on an industrial scale,” said Maire Tecnimont Group and NextChem CEO Pierroberto Folgiero.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (SF)

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