At its headquarters in Kingsport, Tennessee, Eastman plans to establish one of the biggest molecular recycling plants for plastic-to-plastic conversion in the world. More than 100,000 metric tons of plastic trash will be converted annually, producing materials that are like new and cutting greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) by 20–30% when compared to feedstocks derived from fossil fuels.
In an interview with Sustainable Brands®, Scott Ballard, President of Eastman's Plastics Division, described the workings of molecular recycling and the company's aspirations to demonstrate to the world what is feasible.
Through the use of chemistry, molecular recycling breaks down plastic into its constituent molecules, cleans them up, and reassembles them to create new materials that are identical to those created with conventional inputs. It maximizes the amount of waste that can be prevented from ending up in a landfill or being burned by working in concert with mechanical recycling. However, there are two key distinctions: First, because it has little to no value for mechanical technologies, it targets garbage that is difficult to recycle and is destined for landfills or incinerators. Furthermore, where mechanically recycled materials might not fulfill the criteria, molecular recycling can produce virgin-quality materials.