SABIC makes strides in recycling used medical plastic

SABIC (Saudi Basic Industries Corp.), a global chemicals company based in Saudi Arabia, says it has successfully demonstrated the feasibility of recycling used medical plastic back into the medical materials stream.

The project was initiated together with the dialysis department at Jessa Hospital, one of the largest nonuniversity medical facilities in the Limburg region of Flanders, Belgium.

Serving as a pilot proof-of-concept, SABIC says used medical plastic generated at Jessa’s hospital was converted to pyrolysis oil in an advanced recycling process, delivering circular feedstock for SABIC’s production of Trucircle polymers in medical-grade quality with the same performance, purity and physiological safety as virgin-based medical-grade polymers. SABIC adds that this is indispensable for medical approvals by regulators.

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“Working with Jessa Hospital has been an immensely rewarding experience, where we learned how individual belief in circularity can mobilize industry to work together,” says Lada Kurelec, general manager of Polymers Technology & Innovation at SABIC. “I value how this collaboration enabled the creation of an ecosystem to collect and recycle noncontaminated medical waste in a very short time.

“Thanks to this collaboration, we are creating a certified Trucircle polymer portfolio able to serve the healthcare market. We are inviting other players in the value chain and in other regions to join us and Jessa in this groundbreaking initiative to accelerate the circularity of plastics in the medical industry.”

SABIC says advanced recycling technology and the vast experience gained through its Trucircle solutions puts it in a strong position to provide a circular solution designed to help Jessa Hospital reduce the environmental footprint of its medical products by avoiding their incineration after use. The company says approximately 85 percent of the used medical plastic generated at the hospital is not contaminated and, therefore, requires no specialized treatment. This allows it to be repurposed as feedstock for advanced recycling and subsequent production of high-quality medical-grade polymers, saving virgin raw material and contributing to a more circular medical economy.

“We are very pleased with the advanced and circular recycling approach enabled by SABIC to improve our medical waste management,” Jessa Project Engineer Karl Zwinnen says. “The setup of an efficient collection system for used medical plastic has met with strong support among our medical and healthcare staff. Besides contributing to enhanced sustainability and circularity, the solution also has enormous potential for reducing our disposal costs. We look forward to implementing it across all Jessa locations.”

As a result of the pilot project, SABIC currently is in the process of engaging partners to scale up operations and create a closed-loop recycling model for used medical plastic in larger volumes. The company says there also is potential to initiate other similar pilot projects in other countries including the United States.

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SABIC’s certified circular materials are produced using mass balance accounting, according to the International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC) Plus program, which defines a set of transparent rules for tracking the material flow across complex supply chains from the feedstock to final applications. The resulting certified circular polymers form part of the company’s Trucircle portfolio and services.

SABIC’s Trucircle portfolio and services include certified circular polymers as well as design for recyclability, mechanically recycled products, certified renewable polymers from biobased feedstock and closed-loop initiatives to recycle plastic back into high-quality applications and help prevent used plastics from becoming waste.