Extrusion International 6-2022

10 Extrusion International 6/2022 INDUSTRY NEWS  Solvay has teamed up with French start-up Ostium in a joint project designed to enable the mechanical recy- cling of end-of-life single-use surgical instruments mold- ed in glass-fiber reinforced Ixef ® polyarylamide (PARA) from Solvay’s portfolio of specialty polymers. The initiative is the first for valuable polymers to be recycled and upcycled from used healthcare devices, proving that the medical safety provided by high-perfor- mance polymers such as Solvay’s Ixef ® PARA in single-use surgical instruments, can be reconciled with the need for greater sustainability and resource efficiency. “Our customers in the healthcare industry must meet strict regulatory demands, while at the same time striv- ing to minimize the carbon footprint of their products and support the reduction of hospitals and clinics' end- of-life waste,” says Claire Guerrero, Global Marketing Manager Sustainability at Solvay. “We identified a gap between these challenges, which prompted us to forge this unique collaboration for developing a breakthrough recycling process for used surgical instruments that are commonly disposed of by incineration rather than re- claiming their high material value. By controlling every step in the loop from the original Ixef ® PARA to the upcy- cled PARA compound, we will be able to ensure its high quality, purity, and performance for demanding down- stream applications and can make a significant contribu- tion to a more sustainable polymer economy.” Ostium Group, a French start-up specializing in the design and manufacture of instruments for hip, knee, shoulder, and trauma orthopedic surgery, will supply hospitals with new custom surgical kits made with Ixef ® PARA and collect the contaminated instruments after use. This will also promote the replacement of metal surgical instruments with lightweight polymer designs and help medical facilities reduce their time and cost for sterilization, and disposal as well as lower their carbon footprint. The partnership with a regionally recognized leader in the treatment and recycling of waste from healthcare activities with infectious risks, was key to developing a dedicated mechanical process to clean, sort, and grind the collected material, delivering high-quality polymer feedstock that can be used in the production of new polymers. In this way, end-of-life surgical instruments can become part of a circular ecosystem that prevents the loss of valuable material and reduces the consump- tion of fossil resources. Finally, Solvay is evaluating upcycling options and how to integrate back this recycled feedstock into new high- performance PARA compounds. Initial trials have shown that the recycle-based PARA compound provides a very high level of performance, with up to 85% of flexural properties and no loss in excellent surface appearance when compared with the virgin grade, with the addi- tional advantage of a lower carbon footprint. In view of regulations in place in the healthcare mar- ket with constraints on the use of recycled materials, Solvay is targeting open-loop downstream solutions in which the recycled material will find a second life in high- end markets such as automotive and sports and leisure equipment. Ixef ® is a registered trademark of Solvay. Solvay www.solvay.com (Photo: Solvay) Collaboration Stretch Cast Film from Recycled Material – Expertise Pooled to Offer Efficient Solutions  Gneuss and COLINES ® have worked together to offer manufac- turers of stretch film the possibility of using recycled polymer. COLINES ® offers a special, proven cast & blown film extrusion process for handling recycled material, with the help of the Gneuss RSFgenius Melt Filtration System from Gneuss, COLINES ® has already proven this process with up to 40 % recycled content in the manufacture of 10 µm stretch film. The constant melt pressure offered by the Gneuss RSFgenius Melt Filtra- tion System is a major benefit when processing recycled material and the efficient self-cleaning function of the RSFgenius means not only no pro- duction disturbances and of course not production interruptions what- soever. Further, the Gneuss RSFge- nius Melt Filtration System operates fully automatically and only rarely needs any attention – another key advantage in the highly automated COLINES ® extrusion process. Gneuss Kunststofftechnik GmbH www.gneuss.com COLINES ® spa www.colines.it