NEWS


EC makes slow progress on mass balance method


The European Commission (EC) is inching closer to making a decision on which allocation method chemical recycling companies must use for the mass balance approach in calculating recycled plastics output from their facilities. “We have been intensively discuss- ing this internally,” said Julia Roettg- erding, Policy Officer in the DG Environment Circular Economy Unit, in a keynote speech at the Plastics Recycling World Expo in Brussels in September. “We are very much aware of the urgency in giving certainty.” There have been lengthy discus- sions about mass balance with EU member states, which are continuing, she said. The EC’s attempts to reach a decision have been further delayed as new Commissioners appointed after EU elections in June have set up their departmental teams.


When plastics waste is used with


virgin feedstock in a petrochemical plant, mass balance enables a com- pany to say a proportion of the plant’s output is recycled (more details here). Some aspects of what the EC will


The audience listening to the keynote speech by Julia Roettgerding of the European Commission at the Plastics Recycling World Expo in Brussels


permit have been decided, such as not allowing a company to transfer mass balance credits between sites. Roettgerding said that in its discussions with member states, the EC supports the Fuel Use Excluded method for calculating the amount of recycled products, which provides a freer allocation than the Proportional and Polymers Only options. The EC’s decision on the allocation method is crucial for chemical recycling compa- nies whose investment plans are based on being able to allocate at a


higher level of recycled products. The EC is also working on connect- ed elements such as chemical trace- ability. “It must be possible chemically to produce output from the input waste,” said Roettgerding, as it is important to show a link between the waste feedstock and the product allocated as recycled. Certification requirements in the value chain are being developed with a view to limiting the administrative burden, she said. � https://commission.europa.eu


Audi radiator grilles include recyclate


A blend of PC and PET recyclates are used in the new A3 model


Audi said it is mass-producing painted radiator grilles made from a blend of PC and PET recyclates for the new A3 Sportback and A3 Sedan. This is the result of a collaboration between the German automotive manufac- turer, compounding specialist Mocom, and plastics processor Winning Plastics. The recycling process begins with scrap parts from


IMAGE: AUDI 6 PLASTICS RECYCLING WORLD | September 2024


production. After the defective parts are shredded, they are processed in a hammer mill designed by Mocom where the paint is removed and the resulting debris vacu- umed away. During extrusion, the plastic mass under- goes fine melt filtration where it is passed through special filters and the resulting PC+PET recyclate blended at a nominal 27% into the production of new radiator grilles. � www.audi.com � www.mocom.eu � https://winningplastics.com


www.plasticsrecyclingworld.com


IMAGE: D ELDRIDGE


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