Representative image of workers processing mixed plastic through an advanced recycling system to recover raw chemical materials. Image Credits: ChatGPT.
The study estimated a global warming impact of 478kg of CO₂ equivalent per tonne of input plastic and found that the process could have about 80% lower climate impacts than incinerating comparable waste. Reuters reported in 2023 that the company estimated that treating each tonne of plastic could avoid about 1.8 tonnes of CO₂ emissions by preventing the waste from being burned. It found a global warming impact of 478 kg of CO₂ equivalent per tonne for hydrothermal treatment, compared with 2,340 kg of CO₂ equivalent for burning a tonne of mixed waste plastic. This represents a difference of about 1.86 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent per tonne of plastic, or roughly an 80% reduction in global warming impact compared with burning. During the hydrothermal treatment stage, electricity accounted for almost 59% of the process’s carbon footprint.
The Teesside project therefore addresses a specific recycling problem rather than offering a blanket solution for plastic waste. Research published in the Journal of Polymers and the Environment examined the environmental performance of this type of hydrothermal treatment using data modelled on the Teesside facility. However, the researchers also identified electricity consumption as a major contributor to the process’s environmental impact. This is one reason the technology is different from simply putting plastic through a furnace. The plastic itself is not directly combusted. The aim is to recover its chemical building blocks so they can remain within the manufacturing system. An environmental benefit of the technology is linked to what happens to plastic that would otherwise be burned rather than chemically recycled. The life-cycle analysis produced a broadly similar result. The experiment also highlighted an environmental cost associated with the technology. The researchers suggested that improving energy efficiency and using lower-carbon electricity could reduce this impact. Plastics that are simple to separate can still be mechanically recycled, while more complex materials could potentially be broken down into chemical feedstock. In this sense, the project is not simply about finding another way to dispose of plastic, but about finding a route for difficult waste materials to remain in the production cycle.
