AC Biode S.a r.l., a cleantech startup based in Luxembourg and Japan, has successfully depolymerized PET into methanol, in June 2023 in their own lab in Kyoto. It seems to be the first time in history that this conversion has been successfully completed.

Plastic waste is one of the most serious global issues. According to the United Nations (2018), only around 9% of the 6.3 billion tons of plastic waste produced over the last 65 years have been recycled. To understand this issue better we need to understand that there are three methods to recycle plastic waste: material (mechanical) recycling, chemical recycling (e.g. chemolysis or pyrolysis), and thermal recycling. Each process has advantages and disadvantages.

How can we create close-loop circular plastic recycling? Pyrolysis, which converts plastic into oil is a common technology. It is preventatively expensive with high energy requirements above 400°C. AC Biode´s novel approach operates below 200°C. We also don’t use expensive solvents during the process – only the catalyst and water.

Secondly, it produces methanol, a high-value commodity, in a close-loop recycling.

Methanol can be converted to formaldehyde, the basic building block to produce plastics and other applications.

“We are starting with PET because it is one of the easiest plastics to recycle. We already have a patent on converting PET into terephthalic acid (TPA) and ethylene glycol (EG). Methanol is a new breakthrough for us. Yes, there are already a couple of technologies in the world that can depolymerize PET. However, these are still preventively expensive. This is why you don´t see them in a large scale yet!”, said Tadashi Kubo, Co-Founder & CEO of AC Biode. AC Biode is scaling it up and aims to commercialize the technology within 3 years.

The technology is named “Plastalyst”. Plastalyst got awarded at GBC in Australia, the University of Cambridge, Klosters Forum, and was selected by SolarImpulse Foundation, Alliance to End Plastic Waste, Think Beyond Plastic, Entrepreneurship World Cup, and more.

Plastalyst already has 1 patent granted and 2 patents pending. The technology is not only applicable to PET but also to Polyethylene and other plastic waste.