Improving recycling

The ROWA Masterbatch team has been using its expertise to help make the recycling of plastics more efficient and simple, and not just since the current Packaging Act, which aims to increase the recycling rate of packaging waste, came into force in 2019. For instance, ROWALID^®-IR, a solution that allows black and dark plastics to be recycled, has already been on offer since 2020. Up to now, sorting, which is carried out with NIR sensor technology and evaluates the reflected near-infrared spectrum, was found to be difficult due to the use of carbon black in dark plastics – the polymer-specific solution ROWALID^®-IR facilitates detection of dark plastics during the sorting process.

Customers can now also take advantage of the following service: ROWA Masterbatch has a hand-sized NIR detector that measures in the wavelength range 900 nm to 1,700 nm. This allows the reflectance of the formulations to be checked, and the measured spectra can be provided to customers allowing them to assess whether the desired color setting is detectable. For questionable products, a preliminary quick assessment is made by checking how absorbent the formulations are. Where NIR detection proves difficult with existing products, ROWA Masterbatch, as a specialist in customer and polymer specific masterbatches, can offer alternative NIR detectable products.