Introduction

Leitner Technologies s.r.o is company that has long-term experience in manufacturing and reconstructing of many industrial objects in the chemical and food industry as well as in constructions of industrial and logistics parks, including development of plastic to oil recycling technologies. Its owner Peter Leitner founded the company Leitner Technologies s.r.o in 2003. Steel constructions were the main production of the company. Henkel Slovakia s.r.o and Palma-Tumys a. s. used to be one of the mayor customers for Leitner Technologies. In the past the company’s management enhance its focus also on international markets. Our partners in European Union are for example Dematic KG&Co., Company PORR GmbH Oesterreich and Henkel CEE Wien. There are companies Cargill and Piecbud in Poland and in Ukraine we were working with companies TOV FCA Ukraine and Henkel Kiev.

Currently the main company’s focus is recycling of plastic waste into plastic oil. Company has discontinued all other operations and focused primarily on this topic since 2008. The recycling project is fully consistent with the strategic direction of the company, with its long-term priority to establish a competitive position on the global market via unique innovation in recycling processes. Starting from 2008 until now the company has continued the development of the first prototype on its own using its own financial resources. Functional prototype was constructed for additional 370 000 EUR and the company constructed and R&D facility for further improvement and testing of the technology for additional 2 million EUR. The technology is ISO certified.

The objective is to deliver innovative, cost-effective and environmentally friendly solution to the elimination of plastic waste landfilling in line with the Europe 2020 strategy calling for 20% increase in energy from renewables and with the Zero plastics to landfill by 2020 strategy calling for new recycling solutions for energy recovery of plastic waste.

Technical description of the Leitner technology

Low-temperature de-polymerization system is based on the fission of the input material – plastic waste at the temperature of 270 – 405 ° C and transferring the material into simpler polymeric chains. The system represents a unique technical solution for the chemical processing of polymers. The process does not involve thermal combustion of the plastic, but thermal decomposition of the input material. A long polymeric chain is cleaved into smaller and simpler polymers, which are easier to process and utilise. The process starts by inputting the material (plastic) into the first part of the system – the extruder – where it is heated and processed further through the system’s chemical process. Another part of the process is the distributor, where the material is distributed into two evaporation tanks. In the evaporation tanks the plastic is heated up to the temperature of 405° C, which causes it to dissolve and gradually start to evaporate. The output of this process is “plastic vapour” which means evaporated plastic in the form of plastic oil vapour. Subsequently, this vapour is processed through a condenser into a cooler where it is condensed and the final product is produced = alternative fuel consisting of ecological oil and process gas. This is where the process gas is separated from the oil. The process gas then continues to be processed in a special catalyst where it is decomposed without producing any emissions. The technology is considered “green” especially due to the fact that the heating temperature up to 405° C is achieved by electrical heating, which secures constant temperature, thus securing constant characteristics of the final product – alternative oil.

The Leitner technology produces 1 litre of oil from each kilogram of dirty plastic waste. Optimal one-day processing capacity is 1 tonne of dirty plastic waste. The equipment weight is only 2,500 kg, forming a container assembly (dimensions: 8m x 3m x 3m), which can be easily connected/disconnected. This is a 3-phase /400V/ 60A system. For the production of 1 litre of an ecological fuel, the technology requires 1 kWh of electric energy.

The starting point for development of the Leitner technology was purchase the licence for part of the recycling process from a Japanese company Blest Co., Ltd in 2008. Since then, the applicant has been working on the development and improvement of the recycling unit and invested own 1, 5 million EUR into R&D activities and into production of a prototype. Existing prototypes of the Leitner technology are already successfully placed on the market as testing equipment.

Milestones that led to the existing prototype:

1. Elaboration of an original technical feasibility study in September 2007
2. Creation of a marketing prefeasibility study in December 2007
3. Purchase of the licence for part of recycling process from Blest Co., Ltd. in December 2008
4. R&D and manufacturing of the existing prototype of the mobile recycling line in June 2013
5. Obtaining of the CEE trademark for the existing prototype in May 2014
6. Positioning of the existing 4 prototypes on the market as test equipment in 2014-2015.
7. R&D and manufacturing of new prototype of the mobile recycling line in January 2016
8. Obtaining of the CEE trademark for the new prototype in August 2016

2.1. Business Plan, Commercialisation Plan, Marketing Strategy

2.1.1. Market review

World´s total plastic waste production is 275 million tonnes every year. On average, Europe produces 25, 2 million tonnes of plastic waste every year. Approximately 37% of the plastic waste ends up in landfills, 25% is recycled and 15% is composted. Only 23% is used for energy production. European economy thus loses a significant amount of potential ‘secondary raw materials’ among which plastic plays a significant part. Plastic waste has negative environmental impact as it is non-biodegradable and therefore can remain as waste in the environment for a very long time. Global problem of the plastic waste is in its limited recycling.

Production of plastic material increases in dependence with increasing of GDP. The plastic waste increased at 23% (5, 7 million ton) for period of 2008 – 2015. The plastic is used for production of packages as low cost and single-purpose product which is not suitable for repeated usage. The first place in plastic industry belongs to packaging production (40, 1%) and the second to the construction (20, 4%). The global long term trend in plastic industry is 4% grow per year.

While recycling and incineration are increasing, the absolute amounts of waste landfilled are not decreasing because of the growth in waste generation. For example, the amount of plastic waste going to landfill increased by 21.7% between 1990 and 2002 yet the percentage of plastic waste being landfilled dropped from 77% to 62%. While the amount of plastic waste being recycled is increasing, treatment standards exist only for landfills and incinerators and, partially, for recycling. This poses an environmental problem as some recycling facilities can cause pollution if badly operated.

As plastic waste should move away from landfill it will be channelled into a variety of options higher up the waste hierarchy, all of which will be better for the environment. Recycling and recovery of plastics of all package industry was 22.5% in 2008 and has an increasing tendency.

Main barriers to plastic recycling [1] in the most economies of EU are manifested as low volumes and/or fluctuating supply of input material as well as low quality of the received material. The European perspective echoes the national markets: small volumes are problematic, especially so in smaller operations[2]. It is noted that small scale technology is not sufficiently offered on the market. That is why EU wide targets are also needed to create the minimum scale for the EU industry to invest in new recycling techniques.

According to Waste Framework Directive – 2008/98 / EC a common EU target for recycling is:

• 65% of municipal waste by 2030 and
• 75% of packaging waste by 2030.

The European Parliament called on the EC to include in its new proposal the following elements:

• Increasing recycling/preparation for reuse targets to at least 70 % of municipal solid waste and 80 % recycling of packaging waste by 2030,
• Strictly limiting incineration, with or without energy recovery, by 2020, to non-recyclable and non-biodegradable waste;
• Binding, gradual reduction of all landfilling, implemented in coherence with the requirements for recycling, in three stages (2020, 2025 and 2030), leading to a ban on all landfilling, except for certain hazardous waste and residual waste for which landfilling is the most environmentally sound option;
• Increase the re-use/recycling targets for packaging waste;
• Increased material based targets between 2020 and 2030 (80% overall reuse/recycling).

Proposed recycling targets for packaging waste are following:

The proposed operational objectives reflect the ambitions set out in the recently adopted by the Council and Parliament EU’s 7^th Environmental Action Program (7^th EAP):

• Waste generation should decline and be decoupled from GDP evolution;
• Reuse and recycling should be at the highest level feasible;
• Incineration should be limited to waste which is not recyclable.

Also the amended Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive has been adopted, and work is underway to develop EU strategies on waste prevention and recycling and on the sustainable use and management of natural resources.

The social aspect of recycling is not irrelevant, too. Recycling creates more “green” jobs at higher income levels than landfilling or incinerating waste. The overall employment related to the recycling of materials in European countries has increased steadily from 422 per million inhabitants in 2000 to 611 in 2007. This represents an increase of 45 % between 2000 and 2007, corresponding to an annual increase of 7 %.

All these facts, market trends and EU regulations provide really strong positive perspective on the market for Leitner technology.

2.1.2. Plastic waste processing, plastic to oil processing, competitive solutions, added value

Ways of plastic processing:

• Mechanic processing of used plastics,
• Export (mainly to Asia),
• Incineration,
• Landfilling,
• Processing to alternative fuel.

There are following ways to convert plastic into alternative fuel:

• Pyrolysis

Pyrolysis is the thermal degradation of organic materials at temperatures between 400 and 1,000°C in the absence of oxygen. This results in the devolatalisation (dewatering) and decomposition of the feedstock, but the absence of oxygen means that no combustion occurs.

Pyrolysis produces gas, liquid and solid char, the relative proportions of which depend upon the method of pyrolysis and the operating conditions of the pyrolysis reactor, chiefly the rate of heating, the operating temperature and residence time within the pyrolysis reactor.

Reported outputs from pyrolysis of plastic to oil products:

Output Gross conversion               Net conversion

Char                                     2 to 13% wt                                      2 to 13% wt

Liquid                                  77 to 90% wt                                    67 to 80% wt

Gas                                      8 to 10% wt                                      0% wt

• Catalyc depolymerisation

Catalytic depolymerisation is similar to pyrolysis in that it promotes the break-up of the polymer chains in the absence of oxygen to produce smaller molecules. It achieves this at lower temperatures (270–400°C) than pyrolysis by using a catalyst, typically an alumina silicate zeolite. The decomposition of the feedstock results in the deposition of carbon on the catalyst’s surface as a result of the net hydrogen deficiency of the process described above, thus reducing the effectiveness of the catalyst.

Reported outputs of catalytic depolymerisation processes:

Output Gross output                      Net output

Residues                             5 to 10% wt                                      5 to 10% wt

Liquid                                  80 to 90% wt                                    70 to 80% wt

Gas                                      5 to 10% wt                                      0% wt

• Distillate depolymerisation (Leitner technology)

Distillate depolymerisation is similar to catalytic depolymerisation in that it promotes the break-up of the polymer chains in the absence of oxygen to produce smaller molecules. It achieves this at similar temperatures (180–420°C), but without any need for catalyst. This technology is solely based on electrical heating and by continuous melting of material it achieves decomposition of the plastic material to gas, liquid and solid char.

Output Gross output                      Net output

Residues                             1-2% wt                                             1-2% wt

Liquid                                  80-90% wt                                        80-90% wt

Gas                                      5-10% wt                                           5-10% wt

• Gasification and F-T synthesis

Fischer–Tropsch (F–T) synthesis of syngas to diesel products involves the reaction of carbon monoxide and hydrogen present in the syngas to form water and the ‘CH2’ group, which then effectively polymerises to form longer chain hydrocarbons. The precise distribution of products from the F–T synthesis depends on the operating conditions and catalyst used. Low temperatures (200–250°C) and a cobalt catalyst tend to produce mainly alkanes suitable for diesel, whereas high temperatures (350°C) and an iron catalyst produce significant quantities of aromatics and alkenes, but still with a majority of alkanes. This blend can be distilled to separate gasoline and diesel components. To minimise the equipment size and maximise yields, the process operates at between 10 and 30 bars, requiring the syngas to be available at high pressure. Overall, the yield of hydrocarbon liquids from the process will be approximately 40% wt of the input plastic waste.

As mentioned above, the use of a high-pressure catalytic process for the conversion of plastic-derived synthesis gas into oil products requires the use of oxygen (possibly with additional steam) in the gasifier itself.

• Gasification and methanol-to-gasoline synthesis

Gasification is a partial oxidation process whereby the feedstock and an oxidising agent (air, oxygen, steam or a combination of these) are fed into a chamber operating at between 900 and 1,400°C. This results in the total decomposition of the feedstock into a mixture of gases known as ‘syngas’, including carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, hydrogen, water and methane. The decomposition reaction also produces a carbon char, which is oxidised in situ thereby providing the heat required to achieve the high operating temperature. This incomplete oxidation also leads to the formation of tars, which need to be removed from the syngas as they foul catalyst surfaces used for subsequent processing into oil products.

Typical outputs from a waste gasification process:

Output Proportion of total output

Syngas                                 93% wt

Tars                                      6% wt

Char                                     1% wt

• Gasification and bioconversion to ethanol

The biological conversion of syngas to ethanol utilises special strains of micro-organisms adapted to the transformation of carbon monoxide and hydrogen into ethanol.

To achieve needed reactions, the syngas is cooled and fed into a conventional fermenter designed for intimate mixing of the gas with the fermenter broth. The majority of ethanol is produced by the conversion of carbon monoxide (90% converted), with a contribution from the conversion of hydrogen (50% conversion), principally because of the poor solubility of hydrogen in the aqueous broth. Ordinarily, ethanol inhibition of the micro-organisms would prevent ethanol concentrations exceeding 1–2%, but the use of membrane technology allows a more concentrated (> 10%) aqueous ethanol solution to be produced, such that application of a conventional distillation and dehydration systems is viable. Technology suppliers claim that up to 40% of the carbon present in the feedstock can be recovered as ethanol.

Summary of gross output of oil products:

The results indicate that the pyrolysis, catalytic depolymerisation and distillate depolymerisation processes are more attractive than gasification and syngas conversion both in terms of the mass yield of product per tonne of feed plastic and the proportion of the embodied energy present in the feed that appears in the oil products. This is not unexpected as:

– A proportion of the feedstock is consumed during the gasification process, which is converted to carbon dioxide which does not take part in subsequent synthesis reactions.

– The synthesis reactions do not run to completion, leaving a purge gas rich in carbon monoxide and hydrogen, leading to further loss of embodied energy.

– Distillate depolymerisation achieves the best process flow by continuous electrical heating without any need for catalyst, the temperatures are controlled to 0,01°C which results to very continuous and stable output product

Competitive solutions on the market

Presently, the existing competitive solutions have some common features – they provide costly technological processes available only for large operations, the potential outcome of the process is not immediately usable, requires further cleaning and is of lower quality/pureness. Moreover, they are immobile and their installation requires building permission and environmental assessment impact (EIA). In other words the existing competitive solutions are plants.

The Leitner technology is a mobile container.

Overview of technical, commercial and ecological comparison of main competitors on the market

Added value of the Leitner technology from market point of view:

• the Leitner technology is small, 9mx3mx3x container
• is mobile, so the transport distances are short and easy and this results in a minimized carbon footprint, the equipment will be (re)located close to a local sources of plastic waste,
• space efficiency of the Leitner technology – required space is 24 m² and its weight  is 2 500 kg; easy to handle and transportable by truck and 10 t crane,
• low service and maintenance costs,
• low energy consumption,
• short time for reaching the operational temperature,
• technical flexibility, e.g. modular system of the technology (basis equipment (recycling unit) + supplemental units, such as grinding mill, oil storage tank equipped with dosing equipment, generator for electricity and others) which can be easily connected/disconnected and are immediately operable,
• production of ecological oil in the amount of processing 98% of the incoming waste, e. g. 1 litre of oil is produced from 1 kilogram of plastic waste, while consuming only 1kW of electric energy,
• process gas produced during recycling process is suitable for immediate further usage (e.g. heating, etc.),
• marginal emissions of recycling do not contain tar,
• effectiveness of storing the alternative oil (store tank is a part of technology),
• full safety of the technology, integrated fire extinguishing system in the whole container, emergency cooling capable to cool down the machine at any circumstances, fire proof container installation, automation systems including nitrogen purging and emergency shutdown
• technological process is practically waste and pollutant free,
• technology is able to process all types of plastic material on the polyethylene basis (PE, HDPE, LDPE) and also on the basis of polypropylene (PP), and polystyrene (PS), including used motor and hydraulic oils.

2.1.3. Market absorption figures, analyses of growth market tendencies, sales, export, market occupancy

There is no mobile plastic waste recycling technology on the market. EU waste regulations pushes the market into processing of plastic waste instead of its incineration or landfilling.

Taking into consideration only European municipalities market the numbers of potential customers are following: in average EU municipalities pay 80-180 EUR/tonne (the numbers differ by countries and by cities inside one country) to dispose of present none-recycled plastic waste (landfill and incineration). A city with 100 thousand inhabitants produces 200 tonnes of plastic waste a year. Municipalities with 100 thousand inhabitants thus have to pay 16 – 36 thousand EUR a year for liquidation of the plastic waste. The applicant introduces green method to recycle the none-recyclable plastic to municipalities and thus helping to save part of these expenses.

Except of municipalities there is a number of producers of plastic waste with daily amount around 1 tonne and waste collection companies on the market.

Taking into consideration above mentioned facts there are following groups of potential customers:

1. Municipalities with number of inhabitants more than 10 000, because they produce optimal amount of the plastic waste suitable for the Leitner technology,
2. Companies dealing with waste collection,
3. Producers of plastic waste as the side effect of their production (construction companies, automotive, agriculture, electronic producers, etc.).

Risks related to a successful market introduction:

Opportunities related to a successful market introduction:

• amount of plastic waste has been continually increasing world-wide,
• the most of the dirty plastic waste is none-recyclable at present,
• EU waste management policies force municipalities and companies realising the waste collection to improve processing, reusing and/or recycling more waste than so far,
• mobile recycling technology is completely missing on the market,
• building permission and environmental impact assessment (EIA) is not required,
• tailor made solution according to customer´s requirements,
• alternative oil has the same parameters as conventional fuels,
• heating to the operating temperature is 3 hours in comparison with 2 days in case of competitive solutions,
• the Leitner technology does not produce tar in the operational process,
• the Leitner technology is quiet and does not require permanent attendance,
• cleaning and maintenance takes 2 days/month in comparison with 10 days/month in case of competitive technologies,
• consumption of 1 kW of electrical energy will produce 1 litre of alternative oil in comparison with 0, 37 – 0, 48 litre in case of competitive technologies,
• proposed price of the Leitner technology is 10 times lower than competitive technologies ones.

[1] According to publication Plastic Zero Public Private Cooperation for Avoiding of a Plastic as a Waste, cofinanced by Life

[2] Interview: EPRO 2012

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