Plastic Recycling Technology and Outputs: Enhancing Material Longevity and Product Quality towards Commercialisation

塑料是一种具有许多有益应用的非凡材料。2015年，全球塑料产量达到3.2亿吨，如果目前的增长速度持续下去，预计到2050年将达到1.1亿吨（麦肯锡，2018年）。然而，目前只有12%的报废塑料被有效回收，预计回收率仅为约10%。到2050年达到60%（McKinsey，2018）。对一切照旧情景的预测估计，到2050年，海洋中的塑料将比鱼还多（Ellen麦克阿瑟，2016）。回收技术有限公司（RT）开发了一种创新的塑料原料回收工艺，该工艺使用热裂解（一种在没有氧气的情况下加热分解材料的化学反应）来回收各种塑料废物。该工艺被集成到模块化机器RT 7000中，该机器能够处理7000吨/年难以回收的混合塑料废物，生产5200吨/年的新型有价值的烃油，称为Plaxx（r），具有多种用途。Plaxx（r）可以替代塑料制造中的原油衍生材料，实现RT创造塑料循环经济的愿景。通过这项技术，RT的Plaxx（r）可以重复使用和再利用，而不是像目前的线性生产系统那样使用和处理或制成质量较低的产品。RT的目标是使用稳定可靠的工艺灵活处理混合塑料废物，无论其类型、污染物或来源如何，同时更好地控制产出产品并为客户保持其质量。RT在斯温登有一个试点工厂，规模RT 7000机器计划于2020年安装在苏格兰佩思郡的Binn Eco Park。通过对中试设备的开发和试验，我们发现了可以在哪些方面改进技术，以处理更多种类的塑料废物，并尽可能有效地生产出高质量的Plaxx（r）产品。该项目将使合作伙伴能够试用尖端创新技术，以确保RT 7000机器的完整性和Plaxx（r）的质量。该项目将通过产生新的优质产品为RT带来显著的业务增长。RT还将能够为目前不可回收的塑料垃圾创造一个巨大的新市场。因此，该项目将加速RT的增长潜力，并提高投资回报。加强我们的颠覆性技术将为英国及其他地区提供一种对环境有益的混合塑料废物解决方案，并有助于减少化石燃料的使用。

Plastic is a remarkable material with many beneficial applications. Global plastic production reached 320Mt in 2015, and if current rates of growth persist, it is expected to reach 1.1Bt by 2050 (McKinsey, 2018). Yet, only 12% of end-of-life plastic is currently effectively recycled, and recycling rates are forecast to approximate only c. 60% by 2050 (McKinsey, 2018). Predictions of a business-as-usual scenario estimate that by 2050 there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish (Ellen MacArthur, 2016).Recycling Technologies Ltd (RT) has developed an innovative plastic feedstock recycling process that uses thermal cracking (a chemical reaction that decomposes materials heated without oxygen), to recycle a wide range of plastic waste. The process is incorporated into a modular machine, the RT7000, which is capable of processing 7000tpa of hard-to-recycle mixed plastic waste, producing 5200tpa of a new valuable hydrocarbon oil, called Plaxx(r), which has multiple uses. Plaxx(r) can replace crude oil derived materials in plastics manufacturing, achieving RT's vision of creating a circular economy for plastics. With this technology, RT's Plaxx(r) can be used and re-used repeatedly, rather than used and disposed or made into lower quality products, as in the current linear system of production.RT's aim is to flexibly process mixed plastic waste regardless of type, contaminant or origin, using a stable and reliable process, while better controlling the output product and maintaining its quality for customers.RT has a pilot plant operating in Swindon and the first full-scale RT7000 machine is planned for installation at Binn Eco Park, Perthshire, Scotland in 2020\. Development and trials of the pilot plant have identified where the technology can be enhanced to process a wider variety of plastic waste and create a high quality Plaxx(r) product, as effectively as possible.This project will enable partners to trial cutting-edge innovations to assure the integrity of the RT7000 machine and the quality of Plaxx(r). The project will lead to significant business growth for RT by generating new premium products. RT will also be able to create a substantial new market for currently unrecyclable plastic waste. This project will thus accelerate RT's growth potential and bring improved returns on investment. Enhancing our disruptive technology will provide the UK and beyond with an environmentally beneficial solution for mixed plastic waste and help reduce fossil fuel use.