Sustainable Development Goals
Organizations Involved:
Greenfuels AG, First Engineering, ReOil, Several Chemical Companies and Oil Refineries
Services:
Design & Engineering, Due Diligence, Supply Chain Management, Component Supply
The Challenge:
Germany is second only to Japan in terms of recycling more waste than any other country in the world. Seeing five different colored bins for waste disposal is commonplace and the industry has set its own recycling targets that are the highest in Europe. Germany currently recycles an impressive 1.7million tons of plastics a year ("TPA") from a total of 2.8million TPA. Despite the highly efficient processing and recycling technologies currently in place there still remains 1.1 million tons of plastic that cannot be recycled by traditional methods or are the residual waste from previous recycling operations. This non-recyclable fraction is destined for mass-burn incineration or the increasingly restricted option of landfills. A significant opportunity, therefore, exists for a resource recovery operation that can unlock the potential one billion liters of oil in this waste stream.
The Solution:
Greenfuels AG, a developer of Cleantech projects has approached Klean Industries Inc., to propose a thermal processing solution to the mixed waste plastics that are not presently recycled. Greenfuels have already secured a suitable eight-acre site in the industrial area in former East Germany and they require a high-spec fuel oil that is low in sulfur and can be used as a generic fuel for the heavy industry that exists locally.
The first step was to analyze and test a sample of the waste plastics that Greenfuels has secured, which Klean Industries sent to Japan for liquefaction at one of its test facilities. A series of tests were conducted to discover the maximum yield of oil achievable from the client's specific waste stream and the ideal processing temperatures and residence time were established. Within one month of receiving the sample waste, Klean Industries was able to propose a solution that would produce the high-spec fuel demanded by the client. The proposed technology, already commercialized and proven in Japan, incorporates a 100-ton-a-day continuous liquefaction process that heats the plastic waste in the presence of a catalyst to produce a naphtha-rich, hydrocarbon gas. This gas is then cooled and condensed to produce a fuel oil comparable to virgin fuel, but with cleaner-burning properties. The non-condensable gases are returned to the reactor for use as process heat.
Greenfuels has since asked Klean Industries to joint venture on this project whereby they would be responsible for the design, build, and operation of the plant, and Greenfuels would manage all feedstock contracts with their suppliers as well as secure local off-take partners. This opportunity along with a pipeline of similar projects is under consideration by Klean Industries, which already has plans for its first plastic-to-oil facility to be located in Vancouver, Canada which will be wholly owned by the company.
The Outcome:
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