BASF, Covestro and Four Other Companies Join Forces With ETH Zurich on Plastic Waste Gasification Project

The Global Impact Coalition (GIC) is an initiative led by CEOs aimed at facilitating the chemical industry's transition to net-zero emissions. The coalition recently announced a research collaboration with ETH Zurich and five GIC member companies: BASF, Clariant, Covestro, LyondellBasell, and Suez.

This cooperation will explore the technical feasibility and environmental impact of directly converting complex composition waste into chemical raw materials through gasification technology.

The gasification technology for plastic waste can convert plastics into syngas, a mixture composed of hydrogen and carbon monoxide. The specific process involves heating the waste with a gasifying agent such as air, steam, or oxygen in a high-temperature environment (500-1300 degrees Celsius). This process breaks down the plastic molecules into useful gaseous components, which can be used to produce fuel, electricity, or other chemicals, while also generating solid residues such as ash or char.

The newly established industry-university-research cooperation team plans to further convert syngas into compounds such as ethylene and propylene, which are the basic raw materials for the production of plastics, detergents, coatings, and textiles.

Researchers from ETH Zurich, a top engineering school in Switzerland, will conduct an environmental assessment and techno-economic evaluation of the gasification process. The conclusions drawn from these studies will help assess the feasibility of the proof of concept and determine the conditions for potential future pilot-scale projects.

Although the gasification of plastic waste is not a new concept, this technology still faces challenges in terms of high capital costs, efficiency, and raw material stability. In 2000, Ube Industries, Ltd. and Ebara Corporation jointly developed the Ebara-Ube process (referred to as EUP), which is the first gasification technology for plastic waste to achieve commercial-scale application.

GIC CEO Charlie Tan stated, "Our collaboration with scientists from ETH Zurich is an important step towards achieving circularity and net-zero emissions in the chemical industry. By integrating cutting-edge research with industry expertise, we aim to explore scalable solutions that address both environmental and economic challenges."

This study will focus on addressing the unresolved technical issues in the "waste-to-chemicals" conversion process, specifically including: handling waste with varying levels of pollutants and highly complex compositions; integrating new circular feedstocks into the established petrochemical value chain; and optimizing gasification conditions (temperature, gasifying agents, reactor design) for the efficient production of syngas and downstream C2+ olefins.

GIC expects to leverage industry experience and the technical expertise of ETH Zurich to better understand the opportunities and limitations of gasification technology.

Richard Haldimann, Chief Strategy and Technology Officer of Clariant, pointed out: "This collaboration fully demonstrates how science and industry can work hand in hand to promote the practical development of a circular future. With direct conversion technology, we can transform everyday waste into high-value chemical raw materials, reducing our dependence on fossil resources and achieving a closed-loop cycle in chemical production."

Last month, GIC launched a new initiative aimed at building a collaborative bridge between startups, research institutions, academic institutions, and leading chemical companies.

The initiative is called the "GIC Innovation Ecosystem," and its core objective is to drive early-stage innovation to support the development of a more sustainable chemical industry.