Industry First: SABIC to Launch Circular Polycarbonate

A First in the Industry

SABIC - a global leader in chemical manufacturing - has announced the launch of its certified circular polycarbonate (PC) resin and blends made from the upcycling of post-consumer mixed plastic. The first of its kind solution is based on advanced recycling and demonstrates the company’s ongoing commitment to driving a circular economy for plastics.

It is reported that the certified circular PC could offer a potential carbon footprint reduction of up to 23%. 

“In another significant contribution towards the development of a circular economy for plastics, we are proud to have developed a new solution that can help our customers to meet their sustainability targets and generate value by increasing the amount of recycled post-consumer mixed plastic they process,” said Abdullah S. Al-Otaibi, ETP & Market Solution General Manager at SABIC.

"SABIC is continuously broadening its sustainability offerings, and in ETP (engineering thermoplastics) specifically, new solutions in our polycarbonate portfolio to help support our customers’ increasing needs for circular content and CO2 footprint reduction,” added Al-Otaibi.

How is it Produced?

The new certified circular PC forms part of SABIC’s TRUCIRCLE™ portfolio of circular solutions. It is produced through advanced recycling of post-consumer mixed plastics that would have been sent to incineration or landfill.

Difficult to recycle plastics are broken down into a liquid called pyrolysis oil, which is then used as a feedstock to create certified circular building blocks for high-performance plastics that have the same properties as virgin materials. 

The PC has been certified by an independent third party under the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC PLUS) scheme using a standard mass balance approach. ISCC plus provides traceability along SABIC’s physical-linked supply chain from feedstock to final product.