COLOURS | MATERIALS
Detective work: finding colour solutions for recycling
Materials groups are adapting colour products to help the plastics recycling sector deal with issues around sustainable masterbatches, detection in sorting and the grey tone of recyclate, writes Peter Mapleston
As demand for plastic products based on recyclates rises, so do requests for sustainable plastic colourant systems. Companies producing pigments and colour masterbatches are responding to the call. Additive suppliers are also using new colours to assist with post-consumer recyclate (PCR) sorting systems. And there is a growing movement to persuade brands and consumers to accept the colour imperfections in PCR, rather than cover them up. Finke, a leading producer of plastics colourants, has developed the Fibarec masterbatch series. All masterbatches in the new range are based on either PCR or post-industrial recyclate, PIR. “This enables the production of attractive colourful plastic products made from 100 % recyclate,” says the company. Grades available so far are based on rPET. Fibarec grades with rPE and rPP carriers will follow shortly. Fibarec masterbatches can be processed just like masterbatches based on virgin materials and can be used in products based on recyclate or virgin polymers. “The challenge of colouring post-consumer
plastics recyclate lies in the inherent greyish colouring of most PCR materials, which needs to be taken into account in the matching and adjust- ing of the colourant,” says Finke. It says its custom- ers can rely on the experienced colourists, who develop more than 8,000 new colour shades in accordance with customer specification each year.
www.plasticsrecyclingworld.com
Plastics manufacturers can choose from three service concepts for the colour matching process for their individual ready-to-use Finke colourant: colour matching and sampling according to specification, custom colour matching at Finke’s laboratory, or on-site colourist service. In March, Avient announced the launch of
Rejoin PCR Masterbatch for polyolefin packaging applications. Made with polyolefin PCR as a carrier resin, Rejoin PCR Masterbatch can enable a bottle or part to be manufactured from 100% PCR. Avient says that until now, with masterbatch gen-
erally being made using virgin material as a carrier resin, at typical let-down ratios the finished product would contain 3 to 5% non-recycled plastic. “We understand that many consider the use of colour- ants and additives that rely on virgin resin carriers to nullify the claim of 100% PCR, so we worked to develop a solution that could help our customers deliver fully on their sustainability commitments,” says Bob Lee, Marketing Director, Color & Addi- tives Asia. “This leading-edge product answers a growing industry need and demand.” Rejoin PCR Masterbatch combines pigments and functional additives into a single solution without negatively affecting colour or mechanical properties. It can be added during production using standard equipment with little to no impact
July/August 2021 | PLASTICS RECYCLING WORLD 33
Main image: How are suppliers solving the puzzles of colours in plastics recycling?
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