Green materials: Avient‘s long fibre nylon composites from fishing nets; ExxonMobil sells first certified circular polymers to Berry

Materials firm Avient has commercially launched Complēt R long fibre-reinforced composites, which incorporate post-consumer recycled nylon 6 material reclaimed from end-of-life fishing nets.

Eric Wollan, General Manager for Long Fiber Technologies at Avient, said that it had been a challenge to source streams of recycled resins that are compatible with the pultrusion process used to manufacture long fibre composites, but Avient had succeeded.

Complēt R nylon 6 long fibre composites can help OEMs to meet their goals for using materials containing recycled content. Potential markets contain those whose products involve structural applications often deployed in demanding environments. Examples include lighter-weight adventure gear for outdoor recreation, next-generation vehicles that go further using fewer energy resources, and recycled-content office furnishings that contribute towards LEED certification for buildings.

Complēt R nylon 6 long fibre composites provide stiffness, strength, and toughness performance on par with standard nylon 6 long fibre formulations using virgin resin, giving these materials the structural capability necessary to be used as an alternative to metals. Using these composites as a metal replacement also fosters significant weight reductions along with the time and cost savings benefits of single-step injection moulding.

Formulations are available globally in a standard black colour at typical weight percentages of long glass fibre, long carbon fibre, or hybrid combinations. Levels of post-consumer resin content vary within the offerings, which allows end products to meet different performance and sustainability requirements.

Meanwhile, US chemical firm ExxonMobil says it has completed its first commercial sale of certified circular polymers, using its Exxtend technology for advanced recycling of plastic waste. The purchaser is packaging maker Berry Global, which will use the circular polymers to manufacture containers for high-performance food-grade packaging on a mass balance approach. Berry’s sustainable packaging goals include achieving 30% circular content across our fast-moving consumer goods packaging by 2030.

The initial sale of certified circular polymers is based on plastic waste processed at ExxonMobil’s advanced recycling facility at its integrated site in Baytown, Texas. The facility began operations in 2021 and has already processed more than 1,800 tonnes of plastic waste.

The operation in Baytown will be among North America’s largest advanced plastic waste recycling facilities with a capacity to recycle 30,000 tonnes/year of plastic waste when its expansion is complete later this year. Leveraging ExxonMobil’s existing assets, the company’s advanced recycling capabilities can be rapidly scaled to process a wide range of plastic waste.

To help meet the growing market demand for certified circular plastics, ExxonMobil plans to increase its annual advanced recycling capacity to 500,000 tonnes, by year-end 2026 across multiple sites globally.

“We are scaling up our advanced recycling capabilities around the world to manufacture more circular products for our customers,” said Karen McKee, President of ExxonMobil Chemical Company. “Our Exxtend technology helps us meet the growing demand for certified circular polymers, particularly in food contact applications where plastic products provide key sustainability benefits.”

Exxtend technology helps expand the range of plastic materials that society recycles, while maintaining the performance of products over multiple recycling loops. Product quality and performance of the certified circular polymers are identical to polymers produced from virgin raw materials, increasing the variety and number of customer applications.

The company has obtained certifications through the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification Plus (ISCC PLUS) process for several of its facilities including Baytown.

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