SOCAR and ODTÜ Launch Project on Recycling of Plastic Waste

SOCAR Turkey Ar-Ge ve İnovasyon A.Ş., which has taken action for chemical recycling of plastic waste in Turkey, has launched a joint project with ODTÜ. Through the collaboration of the two institutions, the aim is to develop innovative technologies for converting plastic waste into raw materials for reuse. SOCAR Turkey Ar-Ge ve İnovasyon A.Ş., established by SOCAR Turkey, Turkey's largest direct foreign investor, with the objective of developing innovative, sustainable, environmentally friendly products and digital technology, has launched a joint project with Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ) for chemical recycling of plastic waste. Under the scope of the project carried out through ODTÜ Technology Transfer Office (TTO), researchers from SOCAR Ar-Ge and ODTÜ will work on converting waste plastics into their basic components and using them in the production of plastic raw materials in a circular and sustainable manner. In this way, while natural resources are being protected on one hand, an important step will be taken towards developing fundamental technology that will contribute to the circular economy on the other.

EXPERIMENTS WILL BE CONDUCTED IN SOCAR AR-GE AND ODTÜ LABORATORIES

Stating that the project, which will continue for 3 years, will also give SOCAR Turkey the opportunity to develop its own unique method and technology, Bilal Guliyev, General Manager of SOCAR Turkey Ar-Ge ve İnovasyon A.Ş., said, "Our aim is to develop new technology first. Once it is decided to apply it on an industrial scale, we plan to obtain raw materials from waste management companies and other sources from which these wastes can be collected. With this project, it will also be possible to use waste generated within SOCAR. By developing an alternative source for naphtha, which is the basic raw material input of Petkim, through chemical recycling of waste plastics, we aim to contribute to the environment and sustainable economy on one hand, and to the creation of new business models that will provide SOCAR Turkey with a competitive advantage on the other." Noting that they are working together with Dr. Gökhan Çelik, Faculty Member of ODTÜ Department of Chemical Engineering, who has published articles on obtaining motor oil from waste plastics abroad and has patent applications, Guliyev stated that all necessary experimental work will be conducted in SOCAR Ar-Ge and ODTÜ laboratories, and the catalysts to be used in the project will be developed at ODTÜ.

AN EXTENSION OF THE ZERO WASTE PROJECT

Referring to the Zero Waste Project led by the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization under the patronage of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's wife Emine Erdoğan, Guliyev said, "The Zero Waste Project is defined as a waste prevention approach that encompasses preventing waste, using resources more efficiently, reducing the amount of waste generated, establishing an effective collection system, and recycling waste. These objectives form the essence of our project as well. This demonstrates that the project is a very important and appropriate decision, alongside the alignment of Turkey's objectives with SOCAR Turkey's strategies."

WHAT IS CHEMICAL RECYCLING?

The chemical recycling initiated in Turkey by SOCAR Turkey Ar-Ge ve İnovasyon A.Ş. and ODTÜ, one of Turkey's established universities, is defined as a technology aimed at obtaining simpler and more valuable molecules from plastic waste that cannot be sustainably converted through mechanical processes. The outputs obtained as a result of the chemical recycling process can be used as raw material alternatives in the production of primary polymers in the coming period.