Circular economy is a key factor in achieving climate neutrality, saving natural resources and protecting the environment. As the world's leading polymer supplier, Covestro is firmly committed to fully embracing the circular economy and helping it become a global guiding principle. Covestro will make its first appearance at the Green Manufacturing Expo at the Sustainability Expo in Cologne, Germany from November 10 to 11, 2021. It will showcase breakthrough recycling technologies and alternative raw materials.
Dr. Christian Haessler, Head of Covestro’s Global Circular Economy Project, said: “Our goal is to increasingly abandon fossil resources in our production and replace them with renewable raw materials from recycled plastics, biomass and carbon dioxide.” In doing so, we are applying our core competencies in chemistry and bioeconomy, and developing innovative processes for the production of bio-based raw materials, the use of carbon dioxide as raw materials for production, and the chemical recycling of plastics."
Similar to plants that absorb carbon in the form of carbon dioxide from the air and grow with the help of water and solar energy as energy, Covestro also uses this natural principle to extract carbon air from carbon dioxide, from biomass and plastic waste, and use it To make products. Some specific examples are based in part on the type of organism and, to an increasing extent, the certified mass balance range. Therefore, they are contributing to the development of circular economy.
Since 2016, Covestro has been using the climate gas CO2 to produce an important plastic component, the so-called polyol. In these cardyon® brand products, it replaces up to 20% of fossil raw materials, otherwise these raw materials will be used. Thanks to our dedicated research, we have been able to significantly expand the product portfolio of these polyols, from their first application to mattress foam to car interiors and textile fibers to sports flooring.
At the core of all these developments is Triturn® technology. It can manufacture cardyon® products and reuse carbon dioxide-from waste to added value. By doing so, it reduces reliance on fossil raw materials and helps meet consumer demand for more sustainable products.
Plastic waste is a valuable resource for new products. This also applies to polyurethane foam recovered from used mattresses. Covestro has developed an innovative technology that enables the chemical recovery of this type of foam. Unlike other chemical recycling processes, this process can recover and reuse the two core raw materials originally used. Covestro is currently working hard to develop innovative business models in cooperation with the entire value chain. The ultimate goal is to close the cycle of mattress foam.
In many cases, it is impossible to efficiently recover valuable materials because the waste they contain is not collected or their composition and source are unknown. Covestro has taken a novel approach in this regard. The Niaga® label is a unique product passport that identifies its source and ingredients, and explains how the product can best be reused. Carpets, mattresses and furniture parts-all important components of bulky waste-have been identified in this way and can be completely recycled.
Another project that tracks plastics for recycling uses a digital process: blockchain technology. To this end, Covestro is working with Blockchain transparency expert Circularise and other partners. Digital information about the source, composition and ecological footprint of plastics in the value chain is used to generate a digital twin path, which ultimately promotes precise recycling. This has made it possible to prove the use of more sustainable materials in Porsche vehicles.
Covestro AG published this content on November 9, 2021 and is solely responsible for the information contained in it. Distributed by the public at 09:42:04 on November 9, 2021, UTC time, unedited and unaltered.