Dow Partners with Mura Technology to Scale Game-Changing Advanced Plastics Recycling Technology

Dow and the U.K.’s Mura Technology have entered into a partnership to help keep plastic waste out of the environment. The collaboration will support the rapid scaling of Mura’s Hydro PRS (Hydrothermal Plastic Recycling Solution) advanced recycling process aimed at preventing plastic and carbon from entering the natural environment while creating the feedstocks for a sustainable, circular plastics economy. As previously reported, this process reportedly can recycle all forms of plastic--including ‘unrecyclable’ products such as multi-layer, flexible plastics used in packaging,with no limit to the number of times the same material can be recycled.

The deal, which marks an important step in Dow’s commitment to advance a circular economy for plastics, combines Dow’s materials science capabilities, global scale and financial resources with Mura’s leading technology, to produce the circular feedstocks which are then converted into the recycled plastics that consumers and global brands are increasingly seeking. Importantly, the plastics produced using Hydro PRS recycled products are expected to be suitable for use in food-contact packaging, unlike most conventional recycling processes.

Dow will play an important role as a global manufacturer of plastic, proving that Mura’s solution can meet both the sustainability and performance needs of the industry and that the products made via HydroPRS can be employed at scale to make new plastics. As previously reported, the first plant using HydroPRS is in development in Teesside, U.K., with the first 42-million lb/yr line expected to be operational in 2022. Once all four lines are complete, Mura will be able to recycle up to 160 million lb/yr of plastic waste, providing Dow with materials produced by the process. Dow will use these materials to develop new, virgin-grade plastic for applications such as food packaging and other packaging products to be re-circulated into global supply chains, creating a true circular plastics economy.

Said Carsten Larsen, commercial director plasticcCircularity EMEA & APAC for Dow Packaging and Specialty Plastics, “We are delighted to offer our investment and expertise to support the development of this truly game-changing recycling process. We are committed to enacting real change to stop plastic going to waste and accelerate moves towards a more circular economy. We know achieving this goal will take major innovation and investment and we can’t do it alone. That’s why our partnership with Mura is so exciting and why we believe it will form a key pillar of our recycling strategy going forward.”

Said Mura Technology CEO Dr Steve Mahon, “Plastic pollution is a global challenge and our goal is to meet it head on by recapturing millions of tonnes of plastic waste every year and put them to work again as a valuable resource for the world’s biggest brands. We’re changing the way the world thinks about plastics – not as something to throw away, but as a product that can be used over and over again, and sustainably, without damaging our natural environment. Our partnership with Dow will help make this a reality for global brands and deliver a circular plastics economy globally within the next decade.”

To reduce global plastic waste, Mura has designed its business model for rapid global deployment and is building a global network of partners. Dow joins other major global players, as previously reported, such as U.S.-based engineering services company KBR Inc.,  global consulting and engineering company Wood, a global, and Igus GmbH, a global leader in industrial plastics, as partners to accelerate the deployment of Mura’s technology worldwide. Mura’s HydroPRS process, utilizing at its core the Cat-HTR™ technology, was developed and owned by Licella Holdings Limited, New South Wales, Australia.

Mura has identified further development opportunities in the U.S. and Germany, where it will develop new recycling plants in both countries in the next five years, and Asian markets, as part of a rapid global rollout that will see 2 billion lbs of recycling capacity in development worldwide by 2025. The partnership with Dow will be a key driver of this goal. Mura is continuing to raise funds to drive further expansion and is in discussions with a range of global investors.