Showa Denko K.K. (SDK; Tokyo) announced that it has obtained a license to process industrial waste, and started to accept crushed & molded used plastics.
Since 2003, SDK’s Kawasaki Plant, which is located in Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture, has been operating its plastic chemical recycling business, a business to recycle used plastics as raw materials for chemicals under the provisions of Containers and Packaging Recycling Law. SDK calls this business Kawasaki Plastic Recycling (KPR).
Showa Denko’s KPR plant runs a chemical-recycling process for waste plastics (Source: SDK)
The plant serves to gasify used plastics under high temperature, and decompose them to the level of molecules. Then gasified plastics are converted into hydrogen (low-carbon hydrogen) and carbon dioxide (CO2). We use low-carbon hydrogen as raw material to produce ammonia, and CO2 as raw material to produce dry ice and carbonated drinks.
SDK is one of the most experiences companies in long-term commercial operation of plastic chemical recycling through gasification. SDK obtained the license to process industrial waste as a response to the increase in such social needs. In addition, this license enables SDK to diversify sources of used plastics. Thus, SDK has established a used-plastics procurement system that supports stable operation of KPR.