PP from carpet waste
Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics (IBP; Stuttgart, Germany; www.ibp.fraunhofer.de) and partners have developed a solvent-based process that recycles carpet waste into virgin-grade polypropylene (PP). Developed as part of the Isoprep project, which is funded under the E.U.’s Horizon 2020 program, the process is based on an ionic liquid that selectively dissolves PP, leaving behind dyes and other additives. As a result, the PP can be reused for making new products rather than the standard practice of being incinerated, or down-cycled for lower-grade products.
The process has been demonstrated at the laboratory scale involving several liters of the solvent. A pilot plant capable of recycling 1 ton/d of carpet waste is planned to start up by the end of the project in March 2022.