Sk chemicals’ seven plastic materials confirmed compatible with european recycling processes

SK chemicals’ plastic materials have been certified as compatible as feedstock for European recycling processes.

On May 26, SK Chemicals announced that its copolyester ECOTRIA CLARO and PET product line, the SKYPET family, had been recognized by the European recycling assessment body RecyClass as recyclable within the PET recycling stream.

Cosmetic containers and large-capacity containers made from SK Chemicals ECOTRIA CLARO 300.

RecyClass is a cross-industry non-profit organization aimed at promoting the circular economy of plastics in Europe. The organization has established a systematic framework for assessing and certifying the recyclability of plastic materials based on evaluation protocols and design guidelines.

Under the RecyClass framework, SK Chemicals has obtained Technology Approval (TA). This certification verifies whether a material can be consistently used as a recycled feedstock in actual recycling processes without disrupting existing operations. TA is regarded as a key standard for assessing a material’s compatibility with recycling processes when used as a post-consumer recycled plastic feedstock. If a material has not been validated for compatibility, it may cause process interruptions or quality deterioration, thereby hindering practical recycling utilization.

This certification result means that SK Chemicals’ diverse polyester product portfolio, ranging from copolyesters to PET and from recycled materials to virgin materials, has received authoritative recognition for its value as a recycled feedstock. Typically, recycled materials are evaluated based on the proportion of recycled raw materials reprocessed from waste plastic they contain; at the same time, the industry also regards whether waste plastic itself can be reprocessed into recycled raw materials as an equally critical indicator for assessing recyclability.

For example, even if a material contains 100% recycled PET, if it cannot be recycled again after use due to processing issues and is ultimately discarded or sent to landfill, it cannot truly contribute to a continuous circular system. Therefore, industry experts emphasize that building a sustainable recycling ecosystem requires materials to meet two conditions simultaneously: they must both contain recycled content (Recycled) and be recyclable (Recyclable).

SK Chemicals CEO Ahn Jae-hyun said, “This certification is an official recognition of the value of our materials as recycled feedstock, which is a key component of building a complete circular system. To establish a sustainable circular economy, we will continue to build experience in recycling technologies, strengthen our competitiveness across the entire process from raw materials to commercialization, and further expand collaboration with European customers and related partners.”

The seven products certified this time include five copolyester products from the ECOTRIA CLARO series and two general-purpose PET products from the SKYPET series.

Among them, the five products ECOTRIA CLARO 100, ECOTRIA CLARO 200, ECOTRIA CLARO 300, ECOTRIA CLARO 100 CR50N, and ECOTRIA CLARO 200 CR50N have received the "Full Compatible" grade, which means they can be recycled together without restrictions throughout the entire PET recycling process.

The other two SKYPET products—SKYPET BR and SKYPET BR-V—have received a "Limited Compatible" rating, meaning that they can be recycled under specific process conditions.

Previously, SK Chemicals received the highest Class A Letter of Compatibility (LoC) certification from RecyClass for PET bottles made from its recycled PET material SKYPET CR last year. This assessment primarily verifies whether the container's structural design is compatible with existing recycling processes and is considered an important standard for measuring the container's ability to be smoothly processed in actual recycling. The relevant bottle bodies were made using SKYPET CR BB and SKYPET CR BL materials.