New green recycling plant promises a cleaner second life for plastics

GreenCentre Canada spinoff's switchable solvent spells gold for Ontario's landfills

15-Jun-2011 - Canada

Millions of kilograms of used plastics, including foam cushion packaging and soiled food containers, may soon be a thing of the past in Ontario landfills, thanks to a new recycling company being launched.

Switchable Solutions Inc. of Kingston, ON announced that it is building its first plastics recycling plant in Mississauga. The facility will be capable of recycling approximately two million kgs per year of post-consumer plastic materials. The first spinoff company of GreenCentre Canada, Switchable Solutions is a clean technology company that is promising to revolutionize plastics recycling in North America, as well as oil sands processing in Canada.

The company's proprietary technology involves a green solvent-based system developed at Queen's University by Dr. Philip Jessop, one of the world's leading green chemistry researchers. Switchable Solutions' unique technology does not require energy-intensive distillation, which is typically required by conventional solvent systems.

"Dr. Jessop's technology was one of the first to be worked on at GreenCentre, " says Rui Resendes, Executive Director of GreenCentre Canada. "It is gratifying, and a testament to GreenCentre's business model, to see the considerable potential of this green solvent being realized."

Offering an efficient, economical and environmentally friendly approach to plastic recycling and oil sands processing, Switchable Solutions has generated considerable buzz within industry.

"Our company was launched in April, and already we have powerful slate of industry partners," says Mark Badger, President and CEO of Switchable Solutions. "We're currently in discussions with other potential strategic partners, which are capable of helping us to accelerate our plans."

"While the company's inaugural focus is on plastics recycling, another initial target is oil sands processing, and interest from the oil patch is growing, as a result of our technology's potential to increase recovery and enhance productivity in a very green way," Mr. Badger adds.

https://www.chemeurope.com/en/news/132982/new-green-recycling-plant-promises-a-cleaner-second-life-for-plastics.html