Guangdong launches world's first 200,000 tons/year plastic recycling plant

The world's first 200,000 tons/year industrial plant for deep cracking of mixed scrap plastics successfully began trial production in Jieyang city, eastern part of Guangdong province on Friday, promoting the green development of the chemical industry.

Wang Shaole, deputy Party secretary of Jieyang city, said the project has adopted the world's first chemical recycling process technology and the world's first integrated equipment.

"Through deep catalytic cracking, low value mixed scrap plastics are directly converted into high value-added chemical raw materials in a "one-step" process, which will effectively solve the problem of plastic pollution and achieve high-value recycling and utilization," Wang said.

"And with the vigorous promotion and application of the project in the following years, it is expected to help alleviate China's external dependence on crude oil and contribute Guangdong's wisdom and Chinese solutions to the world's development of the green circular economy," said Wang at a news conference held in the Guangdong coastal city on Friday afternoon.

The successful trial production is a key milestone for Jieyang, not only optimizing its business environment but also promoting high-quality industrial development and efficiency.

"It will help accumulate more valuable experience for the city to promote more major and key project implementation in Jieyang in the months to come," he said.

Wang added that his government would continue to spare no effort to support and serve the construction of the project's phase II and III, ultimately processing and utilizing more than three million tons of scrap plastics annually.

The city government has mapped out its ambition to transform Jieyang into the world's first plastic chemical recycling industry base in the years to come, he said.

Wang promised that they would create a market-oriented, rule of law, and international first-class business environment to attract and serve enterprises from around the world.

Zhang Xingong, chairman Guangdong Dongyue Chemical Technology Co, said the core innovation of the project lies in the pioneering "one-step" chemical recycling process for scrap plastics.

Unlike the commonly used two-step process of "classifying and dissolving first before processing into chemical raw materials", the project's technology does not require complex sorting of various low value mixed scrap plastics, Zhang said.

"It can directly convert them into high value-added chemical raw materials, greatly reducing the sorting cost of plastics and achieving a product yield of more than 92 percent," he said.

In terms of environment protection, the project's technology has the characteristics of being driven by innovation, prioritizing quality and efficiency, keeping green and low-carbon, and sustainability, he added.