Renew Phoenix, a joint venture between Generated Materials Recovery and Renewlogy, will build a processing facility on the city's Resource Innovation Campus.

The Phoenix Public Works Department has announced a partnership with Renew Phoenix to turn Nos. 3-7 plastics into fuel. The partnership is the latest venture in the city's “Reimagine Phoenix" initiative to increase its waste diversion rate to 40 percent by the end of 2020 and ultimately reach zero waste by 2050.

“I believe in taking bold chances to make big change,” Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego says. “The idea of making fuel with the plastics we are throwing away is certainly an 'out of the box' idea that I am thrilled to say will also bring jobs and revenue to our city. During a time when cities are giving up on recycling, Phoenix is again leading the way in setting the gold standard for innovation and creativity.”

China used to be a popular destination for mixed plastics bales, but changes to the country’s scrap import policies have cut off that market. In some regions of the U.S., material recovery facility (MRF) operators have had difficulty marketing Nos. 3-7 bales as a result and have had to landfill these plastics.  

“The future is all about recycling, sustainability and doing our part to ensure future generations have a healthy planet," says Councilwoman Thelda Williams, who serves as the chair of the Water, Wastewater, Infrastructure and Sustainability (WWIS) Subcommittee. “I am certain that once others see what we are doing, they will want to be part of this movement to prevent more materials from being simply thrown away."

Renew Phoenix, a joint venture between Generated Materials Recovery, Phoenix, and Renewlogy, Salt Lake City, will build a facility to process the materials on the city's Resource Innovation Campus.

“I am excited for what this partnership brings to Phoenix," says Councilman Michael Nowakowski, whose district is home to the city's Resource Innovation Campus. “This new, innovative venture will encourage other businesses to bring next-generation technology to Phoenix to help us reach our diversion goal of 40 percent by 2020."

Renew Phoenix was selected through a competitive request for proposal (RFP) process. The company will use a proprietary chemical recycling process to reverse the plastics into their basic molecular structure, which will allow them to convert the plastics into fuel, according to a news release issued by the city of Phoenix. Renew Phoenix will bring as many as 15 full-time jobs to the valley, after investing more than $5 million into the project.

"Renewlogy is excited about bringing our technology to Phoenix and creating a more circular economy around plastic waste locally," says Priyanka Bakaya, founder and CEO of Renewlogy. “Phoenix will serve as a model for cities around the country looking for local solutions for plastic waste.”

At its Salt Lake City facility, Renewlogy processes bags of mixed plastics—including film, small form plastics, multilayer packaging and Nos. 4-6 plastics, which are typically not accepted in curbside recycling programs—that are collected through the Hefty Energy Bag Program in Boise, Idaho and Omaha, Nebraska.

The company also is embarking on a project sponsored by National Geographic that targets river plastics. Starting in India, focusing on the area around the Ganges, which the company says is estimated to contribute 1.2 billion pounds of plastic waste to the oceans each year, Renewlogy in helping to address plastic collection and conversion, providing compensation for local communities.

During the Plastics Recycling Conference and Trade Show March 11-13 in Harbor City, Maryland, Bakaya said the project in India would use reverse vending machines that issue coupons to local collectors, who are largely women. A scaled-down conversion system that is mobile and off the grid will be able to process 1 ton of the collected material daily, making diesel products.

Once Renew Phoenix is at full production, the project is expected to divert 10 tons per day of mixed plastics from landfill, which equates to 60 barrels of liquid fuel. Renew Phoenix will be able to scale production to allow regional processing, the city says.

“We are proud to continue bucking the trend and pushing forward with innovation, economic development and repurposing our waste," says Ginger Spencer, Phoenix Public Works Director. “We are committed to building a circular economy and achieving our Reimagine Phoenix goals. This new venture to turn plastics into fuel is eye-opening, and we hope it will serve as a model for other cities to reimagine their own recycling programs."

Cloud-based data platform provides information to improve efficiencies, reduce operating costs and inform strategic decisions.

Asker, Norway-based Tomra Sorting Recycling has launched Tomra Insight, a cloud-based data platform that can transform sorting from an operational process into a strategic management tool for fact-based decision-making at every step of the value and product chain, according to the company.

Tomra Insight turns sorting machines into connected devices that generate process data. The new platform collects this data in the cloud and turns it into actionable information accessible through a web interface. The secure cloud-based data transmission and storage package is provided in partnership with cloud computing service Microsoft Azure. The monitoring and reporting functions of this new platform will complement existing process control systems.

Tomra Insight provides near-real-time data that is accessed via a secure connection and user-friendly interface on desktops as well as on mobile devices. This provides machine users the freedom to remotely analyze performance metrics and proactively manage machines for performance optimization and preventive maintenance.

By providing digital metrics such as throughput, material and size distribution and acceptance and rejection rates, Tomra Insight gives equipment operators the critical operating data necessary to optimize sorting performance. The information can help reduce machine downtime, optimize machine settings, maximize throughput, sort to target quality, improve the efficiency of machine operators and internal service personnel and reduce operating costs. Through personal reports and alerts, Insight provides data analytics to help manage proactive and condition-based maintenance, parts ordering and servicing.

“The launch of our revolutionary Tomra Insight platform is but a first step in the future evolution of improving the sorting circuit’s overall operating performance,” says Carlos Manchado Atienza, regional director Americas, Tomra Sorting. “It unlocks the true power of near-real-time reporting of operating data, so our customers have the necessary tools to monitor and optimize their sorting processes, improving profit potential. Tomra Insight will allow us to enhance service and maintenance schedules, offer predictive analytics for a component’s service life and develop optimal machine sorting configurations, technologies and applications.”

The company says it has modified the front end of its cellulosics production process to convert end-of-life plastics into molecular components.

Eastman, Kingsport, Tennessee, has announced a second innovation designed to address end-of-life plastics. Known as “carbon renewal technology,” the company says the innovation is capable of recycling some of the most complex end-of-life plastics, including nonpolyester plastics, flexible packaging and plastic film and mixed plastics that cannot be recycled conventionally.

In March, the company announced its plans to launch an advanced circular recycling technology that breaks down polyester products that cannot be recycled by current mechanical methods into basic polymer building blocks.

By modifying the front end of Eastman's cellulosics production, carbon renewal technology converts end-of-life plastic feedstock into molecular components. Eastman says the process partially oxidizes the plastic feedstock and efficiently converts it into the basic building blocks of certain Eastman products, including Advanced Materials and Fibers segment products that serve ophthalmics, durables, packaging, textiles and nonwovens end-use markets.

Eastman says it has completed pilot tests at its Kingsport site and plans commercial production in 2019 by leveraging existing assets. The company adds that it is exploring commercial collaborations to yield mixed plastic streams to be recycled through carbon renewal technology at commercial scale.

Eastman board Chair and CEO Mark Costa says, “Eastman has the technology, the innovation power and the people to make a difference. Eastman is now uniquely positioned to deliver two powerful innovation solutions that target different plastic waste streams that pose complex challenges. Plastics are used in so many important ways. But because some don’t have good end-of-life solutions or are discarded, the world is facing a problem of significant magnitude.”

He continues, “Eastman is embracing its stated purpose of enhancing the quality of life in a material way for people around the world. This translates not only to producing superior materials for the products consumers use daily but also contributes in a meaningful way to a circular economy—an economy where we reuse and repurpose our resources so they retain their value for as long as possible.”

Steve Crawford, senior vice president and chief technology officer for Eastman, says the company’s new recycling portfolio is a perfect example of its innovation-driven growth strategy. “As a leader in materials innovation, Eastman can now provide unique solutions that will support our customers and end users in achieving their sustainability goals,” he adds. “Eastman’s circular technologies represent the opportunity for partnerships to provide solutions, including end-of-life options, that will have an impact on the global waste problem.”

Additional information is available here. 

The association added two new government relations managers to its team.

The National Waste and Recycling Association (NWRA), Arlington, Virginia, hired Teddy Greissing and Jonathan Taylor to its government affairs team. Greissing and Taylor will be assisting in the Washington, D.C., office and will be trained to eventually help with NWRA chapter operations.

 “Many of the issues facing our industry are at the state and local level. The addition of Teddy and Jonathan to our state government affairs team will only make NWRA a stronger voice for the waste and recycling industry,” says NWRA President and CEO Darrell Smith.

Greissing is a manager of government relations with the NWRA. According to an NWRA news release, he previously worked for Sanofi, a global pharmaceutical company in Bridgewater, New Jersey, where he supported the work of the federal government affairs team. In addition, Greissing worked with a team to establish a best-in-class civic action program, with a grassroots program designed to educate employees and the public on critical policy issues impacting the business. During his time working with the Civic Action Team they grew the contributions to the PAC tenfold. Prior to his work with Sanofi, Greissing worked on the John McCain presidential campaign.

Taylor is a manager of government relations with the NWRA. According to an NWRA news release, Taylor was the public policy intern at the Industrial Minerals Association of North America. He also worked to solve regulatory issues with Mercedes-Benz USA as a regulatory and recalls intern. He then decided to study abroad and intern his junior year with MP Connor Burns in The Parliament of the United Kingdom. 

Portable two-ram baler is ideal for demolition projects, disaster cleanup and rural locations, according to the manufacturer.

Bakersfield, California-based Sierra International Machinery’s REB-X Press two-ram baler is easily transportable while maintaining heavy-duty construction, performance and the ability to process a variety of material.

The portable two-ram baler is highly adaptable and is the ideal machine for various applications: multiple facilities that need a baler to use on a rotational basis or during maintenance shutdowns, demolition projects, disaster cleanup, landfill projects and rural locations, according to the company.

“I am extremely proud of our engineers and our team at Sierra to be able to introduce and deliver a new innovative machine for the recycling industry just one year after introducing the REB-4, a completely new two-ram model that has been extremely successful,” says John Sacco, president and owner, Sierra International Machinery. “The REB-X Press is going to give waste and scrap recyclers throughout the world the flexibility to maneuver the two-ram baler to wherever they need to process material. The REB-X is just another example of how Sierra is leading the industry in innovation.”

The REB-X Press will be on display at ISRI2019 in booth  No. A4 in Los Angeles and WasteExpo booth No. 2261 in Las Vegas.

Sierra International Machinery is a leader in the sale and support of processing equipment for the scrap and recycling industries, offering a full range of equipment to meet the demands of today’s processing facilities. 

To learn more about the REB-X Press click here.