Sponsored By

Alpla subsidiary dramatically lowers the carbon footprint of rPETAlpla subsidiary dramatically lowers the carbon footprint of rPET

Recycling plant in Austria reduces the carbon footprint of recycled PET by 90% using power from renewable energy sources.

PlasticsToday Staff

March 21, 2018

2 Min Read
Alpla subsidiary dramatically lowers the carbon footprint of rPET

PET pellets from post-consumer drink bottles provided by PET Recycling Team GmbH (Wöllersdorf, Austria), a subsidiary of Alpla, result in greenhouse gas emissions that have been confirmed as only one-tenth or 90% of the level for new material.

Last year, PET Recycling Team (PRT) in Wöllersdorf obtained a measurement of the environmental impact of recycled PET (rPET) produced in-house. The calculated value was a carbon dioxide equivalent of 0.45 kg for every kilogram of material produced. For comparison, virgin PET has a carbon dioxide equivalent of 2.15 kg per kilogram.

A new calculation by c7-consult takes into account the now optimised power mix, resulting in a carbon dioxide equivalent of just 0.21 kg.

“By switching to electricity from renewable sources, we have again managed to reduce CO2 emissions by a considerable margin,” says Peter Fröschel, plant manager. “Our annual production of rPET amounts to around 31,000 tonnes.

EastPack 2018 held June 12-14 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City features the latest in manufacturing and automation, a dedicated 3D Printing Zone, hundreds of exhibitors and a jam-packed 3-day packaging conference. For more information, visit the EastPack website.

CEO Günther Lehner sees this as confirmation of Alpla’s sustainability strategy. “We have noticed greater demand for products made from recycled materials. In recent years, we have managed to move away from discussions that focus purely on cost, establishing sustainability as a core value.”

The environmental impact (i.e., carbon footprint) was calculated in accordance with ISO 14044, starting with the collection and sorting of used PET bottles and covering transportation to the Wöllersdorf plant as well as washing, processing and granulating. The analysis is based on the mass and energy balance (electricity and gas consumption) for 2016, which has remained constant.

Alpla has been working intensively on plastic recycling methods for more than 20 years.

“Our customers are committed to sustainability, and we support them with our expertise.” says Lehner. “We believe that recycling is appropriate and important not just for legal reasons: it is an economic sector of great significance for the environment and the future of our industry.”

Alpla operates recycling plants in three locations. In addition to the wholly owned subsidiary in Wöllersdorf, a plant was established in 2013 in Radomsko, Poland, and there is a joint venture in Mexico. In total, 65,000 tonnes of food-grade rPET is produced from post-consumer material at the three plants each year.

Sign up for PlasticsToday newsletter

You May Also Like