Ready for a second life

 
Designing plastic packaging for circular use is not just a technical challenge. It requires a holistic approach and new forms of collaboration. An EcoCircle initiative called "Design4Circularity" helps pave the way.

A circular economy is humanity's best hope for a sustainable future. That is especially true for plastics, where the reuse of plastic materials in packaging could help cut vast amounts of waste and emissions. But what makes packaging truly circular? Together with leading industry partners, Clariant hopes to provide answers in a pioneering initiative called "Design4Circularity." Clariant is going to unveil its first circular packaging solution for personal care products at the K 2022, the world's leading trade fair for plastics and rubber which takes place in Düsseldorf, Germany, from 19 to 26 October 2022.

The packaging in question is a colorless bottle for skin care products. It is made from 100% post-consumer recyclate or PCR and wrapped in a full-body shrink sleeve that is easy to remove. Designing the bottle this way makes the components easy to sort and recyclable. This, in turn, helps the materials repeatedly find their way back into the loop, even for high-value applications. Perhaps most importantly, the design still allows for the kind of high-quality looks and distinctive shapes that consumers associate with popular cosmetics brands. 

Rethinking Packaging Design
According to Richard Haldimann, Chief Technology and Sustainability Officer at Clariant, it is crucial to design circular packaging from the ground up: "Achieving circularity needs a complete shift in designing product packaging and packaging raw materials, considering sortability, recycling, and packaging end-of-life," he says. That is why "Design4Circularity" revolves around a unique collaboration between different industry partners. By bringing together Clariant, Siegwerk, Borealis, and Beiersdorf, the initiative combines unique expertise and different expectations along the entire packaging value chain.

Beiersdorf, for example, as a global producer of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) with popular brands such as Nivea and Eucerin, aims to combine the very particular design requirements of a cosmetic brand with full circularity. "We follow an ambitious sustainability agenda including the vision of fully circular resources," says Stefan Rüster, packaging expert at Beiersdorf. He sees the first joint product development in this field as ground-breaking for future cosmetics applications, not just at Beiersdorf: "We are very proud of this success and hope that this motivates our industry peers to follow."  

Overcoming Material Limitations
Today, repeated recycling still strains plastic materials and leads to more and more contaminated input streams. That is why most PCR is still down-cycled. To give these plastics a second life in high-quality packaging, the materials must retain their value and purity even through multiple lifecycles. Among the most critical design parameters for "Design4Circularity" were thus the polymer and additive composition for both the sleeve and the bottle, sortability, de-inking, recyclability, and PCR quality.

The key to reaching these parameters was to combine new technologies and some highly specific know-how. For example, Borealis, one of the world's leading providers of circular polyolefin solutions and an expert in mechanical plastics recycling, contributed a high-quality PCR based on their proprietary Borcycle™ M technology. Clariant added its unique know-how in additive solutions to the mix to protect the material's quality and prevent the polymer chains from breaking down at each individual recycling step. Leading ink manufacturer Siegwerk provided its advanced ink systems. Using these on the bottle's sleeve makes for high-quality visual designs and easy de-inking after use.
 

Illustration of “Design4Circularity”’s pioneering packaging concept for personal care.

Game-Changing Teamwork  
"Our initiative is a frontrunner in uniquely assessing circularity in every design parameter, from additives to bottle material to inks, mapping industry competencies, potential gaps, and feasibility proof points to open up viable, ultimately circular solutions," says Belal Habib, Head of Brand Owner Collaboration at Siegwerk. As Clariant's Richard Haldimann explains: "This collaboration was possible because all participants are dedicated to a circular economy, with company-wide programs and holistic understanding of the systems involved."

The resulting solution is both practical and effective. Using standard recycling infrastructure, the partners of Design4Circularity were able to demonstrate improved sortability and high material recovery rates for sleeved bottles made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE). Trials with sleeved PET bottles showed similar results. There are still further advancements needed in sorting technology in order to achieve full circularity, especially for colorless plastics. Technologies such as digital watermarking or artificial intelligence could help. Nevertheless, the new packaging solution and the unique industry collaboration behind it are set to change the industry: "Transforming to a circular economy is a team effort," says Peter Voortmans, Global Commercial Director Consumer Product at Borealis. "Only together with like-minded partners can we shape an ever mindful tomorrow."

 

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AMOMAX-CASALE: 过去、现在与未来

我们采访了领导AmoMax-Casale合作项目的两位专家：科莱恩催化剂全球研发总监马艾德(Marvin Estenfelder/ME)和卡萨利首席技术官Ermanno Filippi (EF)。

此项目是什么时候开始启动的？
我们的项目于2016年启动，从产品研发到实现成功行业应用，总共不到四年时间（ME）

当时是哪些原因促成了此次合作？
当时我们一直在寻找一款活性更高、能够与卡萨利氨合成塔技术相匹配的催化剂产品。AmoMax-Casale正是两大团队开展多学科协作的重要成果。(EF)

AmoMax-Casale的第一家客户对该产品非常满意。请问下一步有什么计划？
目前多家客户都对AmoMax-Casale产生了浓厚的兴趣。第二家客户也已确定在其氨合成反应器中采用这款产品。我们相信，从明年开始，该产品将会在更多项目中得到应用。

客户是否需要对当前的生产工厂进行调整？
客户需要考虑的唯一重要事项是：他们的反应器内件需由卡萨利设计和批准。与此同时，卡萨利对氨合成塔进行的额外翻新改造有助于提升工艺效率、从而提升经济效益。(ME)

该新型催化剂将会给哪些终端市场获益最多？
目前，超过70%的氨被用于化肥生产。未来，由于AmoMax-Casale可应用于蓝氨和绿氨生产工艺，能源市场的重要性将会逐步上升。(ME)

AmoMax-Casale上市之后，合成氨市场的需求是否将进一步扩大？
AmoMax-Casale是合成氨生产技术面向节能减排迈出的重要一步。未来，蓝氨与绿氨将在能源与储氢以及“零碳排放”发电中发挥重要作用，而节能减排则是实现蓝氨与绿氨生产的先决条件。(EF) 

科莱恩与卡萨利近期还会开展哪些合作项目？
未来，卡萨利和科莱恩将继续在其他合成氨项目中开展合作，同时也会共同开发更多创新性技术，助力客户实现“零碳排放”的目标。 _________________________________________________________________