Following the Advanced Recycling Conference held in Cologne, Germany, Pyrowave announced November 17 it reached a major stage for the future of global plastic recycling in the fight against climate change. Pyrowave technology has successfully passed Michelin Group’s quality tests with the first 99.8% pure recycled styrene monomer produced from polystyrene (PS) waste. Recycled monomer can now be integrated into industrial elastomer batches. For the first time, a finished product will incorporate fully traceable and segregated recycled styrene, where all the styrene will be physically present in the product versus a mass-balance, credit-based content scheme.

The styrene monomers are made using Pyrowave’s microwave process. The monomers are identical to virgin material, yet with a 45% reduced carbon footprint. They can then be reused in the production of items made from recycled materials and share the same applications as virgin materials used in transportation, packaging, electronics, and construction. This approach provides a circular economy solution to the global plastics recycling challenge.

A load with approximately three tons of recycled styrene left Montreal, Canada, for the Michelin plant in France (seen below). Following years of testing, Michelin will be positioned to manufacture batches of industrial styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) products with Pyrowave recycled styrene.

“The industry has been dreaming of a circular economy with recycled, traceable and segregated content,” states Jocelyn Doucet, Pyrowave CEO. “This achievement confirms that we can implement a 100% traceable and controlled supply chain in polystyrene recycling. We can now provide recycled content to meet consumer expectations: products can now be made entirely from recycled material, without dilution or degradation. Pyrowave is defining a new standard in plastic recycling and is leading the way toward reaching environmental goals.”

Michelin management has been present at all testing stages at the Pyrowave plant. This new accomplishment will contribute to Michelin’s environmental goals.

“The Pyrowave approach is designed to electrify processes using microwaves, making it possible to keep resources in the production loop of new goods while also reducing the carbon footprint,” says Christophe Durand, sustainable materials development manager, Michelin. “This unique technology will contribute to our goal of an all-sustainable tire in 2050, which will incorporate 100% recycled or renewable bio-sourced materials while contributing to our zero-emission roadmap. Pyrowave technology is ahead of its time. We are not simply catching up with tomorrow, we are aiming for the day after.”

With governments around the world setting ambitious environmental goals, Pyrowave delivers an end-of-life solution for existing plastic products and maximizes opportunities for the polystyrene circular economy.