Decarbonisation Technology August 2025 Issue

Unlocking value from plastic waste Advancing plastics circularity with a suite of technologies designed to upgrade pyrolysis oils and liquefied plastics derived from plastic waste

Alexandra Sakamoto and Luis Grau Shell Catalysts & Technologies

T he world has an insatiable appetite for plastics. Over the last 70 years, they have become embedded into every aspect of our lives, from life-saving medical equipment to the packaging that keeps our food fresh for longer. However, as demand continues to grow, so do the challenges of plastic waste and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from virgin plastic production. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), by 2040, plastic leakage into soil and waterways could reach 30 million tonnes per year – a 50% increase from 2020 – while emissions mainly from plastic production and conversion could account for as much as 5% of global GHG emissions. With annual global plastic consumption set to grow by more than 60% by 2040 to more than 700 million tonnes, it is imperative to urgently

tackle the environmental impacts of the linear plastic economy. A shift to a plastics circular economy could help reduce plastic waste and the need for virgin plastic production. Policy action is gathering pace The challenge of plastic waste is quickly moving up the political agenda. The EU is leading the way with several ambitious plastics policies and regulations, including the recently enacted Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, which establishes targets for minimum recycled content across various packaging types and aims to reduce the use of primary raw materials in plastic production. Other countries, such as Japan, China, and India, along with US states, such as California, among others, are also taking strides towards better plastic waste management. Despite this,

Multiple complementary plastic recycling pathways exist

Mechanical Most established recycling path Least expensive option

Requires extensive sorting Lack of product exibility Limited number of cycles Quality degradation

Less

Sorting required

Chemical/advanced recycling Requires various levels of sorting and high-purity feed Small proportion of currently collected plastic waste streams More capitally intensive Can produce indistinguishable plastic feedstock Unlimited number of cycles

Pyrolysis

Depolymerisation

Dissolution Mechanical

Gasication

Crude Oil

Cracker

Monomer Pre-polymer Polymer Processing Product

Spent

Figure 1 Plastic recycling falls into two main buckets: mechanical and advanced (or chemical) recycling