CIRCULAR ECONOMY AND ITS IMPLEMENTATION IN
CHEMICAL INDUSTRY: AN OVERVIEW
Maulik Bhetaria1, V.G. Gandhi2, P.A. Joshi3
1 Student, Department of Chemical Engineering, Dharamsinh Desai University, Nadiad
2 Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, Dharamsinh Desai University, Nadiad
3 Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, Dharamsinh Desai University, Nadiad
[email protected]
2 [email protected]
[email protected]
ABSTRACT
Chemical Industry is growing ever so quickly. It is the supplier to virtually every other industry in the
world. Such high demands for the industry increases its propensity to consume more raw material and
energy. Waste generation also becomes a major issue. A sustainable management of these natural
resources and the waste it generates after various chemical processes must be done in order to have an
economical as well as environmentally sound model of business. The following article provides an
overview about the concept of circular economy (CE) and why it is important to implement it in the
chemical industry. It discusses the major elements involved in the circular economy in both generalised
as well as specific industry model. Various case studies have also been discussed regarding the elements
of CE, in which industries have already implemented measures of circular economy(CE) as successful
business model. It also discusses the economic viability and commercial maturity of various executable
measures, and sheds light on the pathway of implementation of CE and its timeframe.
Keywords: Circular Economy, Chemical industry, Waste Management, Sustainable development
INDEX
1. Introduction 2
1.1 Concept 2
2. The goal of circular economy(CE) in chemical industry 2
3. Circular Economy Model in chemical industry 2
3.1 Sourcing and substitution of raw materials 4
3.1.1 Substituting Raw materials 4
3.2 Ecological Process Design 4
3.2.1 Examples of energy efficient process design 4
3.2.1.a) Chlor-Alkali Industry 4
1
3.2.1.b) Polymer Industry 5
3.3 Waste Processing and Management 5
3.3.1 Processing Raw materials creates waste 6
3.3.2 Case study of waste management 6
3.3.3 Reuse 6
3.3.4 Recycling and recovery of waste 6
4. Implementation path and timeframe of circular economy (CE) 7
5. Conclusion 8
6. References 8
material after. Hence, a regenerative cycle is
set up.
1. Introduction The circular economy has been formed by an
implementation of various concepts. They are
Circular economy directs to re-examine growth, the cradle to cradle design philosophy by
removing the use and throw techniques used in William McDonough and Michael Braungrat;
Biomimcry as articulated by Janine Benys; The
the linear economy mode to create a positive
industrial ecology of Reid Lifset and Thomas
impact on the society. It involves gradually Gradel; the blue economy systems approach
eliminating any economic activity from the described by Gunter Pauli.
consumption of finite resources and designing the
waste out of the structure. Upheld by a conversion
to renewable energy sources, the circular
2. The goal of Circular Economy(CE) in
economy model creates and enhances the capital
Chemical Industry
of social, economic and natural. Demand for chemicals is very rapidly in China, India and
many other countries. This increased demand imposes
a global threat on the resource scarcity, and circular
economy(CE) is the most sustainable way to ensure
1.1 Concept that the depletion of these resources is curtailed in
order to have a better future.
The basic idea is to have a systematic shift from the
very well-known linear economy model of ‘make, take,
and dispose’. This means putting greater emphasis on
the aspect of providing environmental and societal Global chemical Industry production has grown by a
benefits and also generate ample opportunities for whopping 71% since 1990 according to Cefic. This very
businesses for a considerable economic growth. It is thing proves the extreme potential the chemical
based on following principles: industry has for innovations by which it can reduce the
overdependency on the natural resources and lead to
1. Design out waste and pollution its sustainable use. Overall demand for chemical
2. Keep products and materials in use products is likely to grow—driven by the need for
3. Regenerate natural system products that enable circularity downstream in the
value chain. The chemical industry is a supplier to
To address it in more simplified way we can say virtually every other industry. As a result, it is in a
that the main idea of circular economy is to position to enable circular-economy models for its
design products such a way that when it is downstream customers. The potential upside in terms
been thrown away as waste, it can be fed back of energy savings is tremendous.
into the system and can be used as a raw
2
The cornerstone for various markets such as energy, Taking the above concepts discussed in Section
food and materials are created by chemicals. So, in a 1 into considerations, a circular economy
way to have a proper implementation of Circular model in chemical industry is a circular loop of
Economy, it’s implementation in the Chemical industry three core elements:
is very crucial. 1. Sourcing and substitution of Raw material
2. Eco design
3. Waste processing and management
3. Circular Economy model in
Chemical industry
Figure1: General Circular Economy Model in Chemical Industry
Figure 2: Specific Circular Economy Model in Chemical Industry
Raw materials are processed with the help of energy to intermediate chemicals are sent to the respective
produce at first various intermediate chemicals. These specific product industries where the end-used
3
product is formed. Waste generated can be 3. It can be chemically recycled, altering the
reintegrated into the loop by following four ways. chemical properties and reintegrated into
intermediate chemicals loop.
1. It can be re-used as the end-used product.
4. Energy from this waste is recovered and can be
2. It can undergo mechanical(non-chemical)
reintegrated straight after the raw material
recycle process to be reintegrated into specific
loop and reduce supplement the energy
product industry loop.
requirement for the chemical processes.
3.1 Sourcing and Substitution of process ought to be made in order to make it more
environmentally friendly, energy efficient, sustainable,
Raw materials
and also optimise the production process.
Widespread implementation of circular economy
Designing process and plants with such specifications
would require a better management of the raw
involving taking into considerations the indexes of
materials used. Ensuring the sustainable use of the
sustainability and various design principles which are in
natural resources is one of the main aspects to be
alignment with the idea of Circular Economy(CE). The
addressed regarding the implementation of circular
ultimate aim is to maximize efficiency, minimize the
economy, more so in the chemical industries. Over
waste and proliferate the profitability.
dependency on the non-renewable resources would
lead to its subsequent depletion. The following are the process modifications to improve
the energy efficiency of the process, they also happen
to be proven business models for various chemical
industries across the world.
3.1.1 Substituting Raw materials 3.2.1 Examples of energy efficient
process design
Fossil fuels are the main source of raw materials for
chemical industries for synthesis of various chemical 3.2.1.a) Chlor-Alkali Industry
derivatives. However, gradually shifting towards
renewable feedstocks such as biomass, solar, wind and Oxygen depolarized cathode technique in
tidal energies is the best alternative. CO2 can also be chlorine production.
used as a carbon source. The huge amount of hydrogen Chlorine has a widespread use in various chemical
required for this can be obtained by electrolysis of products. More than half of the chemical products are
renewable energy sources discussed above. This use of produced from either chlorine or caustic soda. Chlorine
CO2 and other renewable resources can be used as a derivation often needs an excess of energy due to the
carbon source and limit the consumption of virgin fossil nature of the highly reactive bond it forms with almost
feedstock and thereby contributing to the closing of every other element and hence it needs to be isolated.
carbon loop by reducing the need to extract more The oxygen depolarized cathode technique(ODC) leads
carbon from the earth. to a curtailment of 30% of the energy requirement in
comparison to the convectional process.
The method is based on the membrane process for the
3.2 Ecological process design
electrolysis of chlorine-alkaline where the derivation of
In chemical industry there exist an intricate link hydrogen, chlorine and sodium hydroxide takes place
between the desired product formed and the from cooking salt and water.
manufacturing process which was carried out for it.
The major difference in comparison to the general
Any product or process engineer has an objective to
process is that the hydrogen-producing electrodes are
develop the most cost-effective way to carry out the
replaced by an oxygen depolarizing cathode. When the
process in such a way that the it is commercially viable
cathode is supplied with oxygen, it prevents the
and quality of the product is not compromised.
formation of hydrogen, which leads to the production
However, often in the chemical industry such process
requires a lot of energy. Considerable changes in the
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of just sodium hydroxide and chlorine. The reactions
are as follows:
Anode reaction: 2 NaCl -> Cl2 + 2 Na⁺ + 2e⁻
Cathode reaction: H2O + ½ O2 + 2e⁻ -> 2 OH⁻
3.2.1.b) Polymer Industry
In total: 2 NaCl + H2O + ½ O2 -> Cl2 + 2 NaOH
Gas-Phase Phosgenation of Toluene diamine
The complex structures of the ODC electrodes involves (TDA) to Produce Toluene diisocynate (TDI).
the interaction of electro catalysts, hydrophobic
polymer components (like PTFE), support structures The major ingredient in the formation of polyurethane
and additives to form hydrophilic and hydrophobic is isocyanates. They are formed by polymerisation of
areas. isocyanates with polyols. The preferred use of
polyurethanes in the automobile industry, in
construction and in refrigeration technology. The
polyurethane foams have an extensive application in
industrial insulation, refrigeration, manufacturing of
mattresses, furniture and automobile seats, footwear
and wood component replacement.
The reactions traditionally take place in the liquid
phase. But higher rate of solvent consumption and
much larger energy requirements impeded the
economic feasibility of the process. However, if the
same reaction is carried out in the gas phase, the
economics of the reaction becomes much favourable
along with a decrease in energy requirement by 40%
and solvent consumption comes down to 80%.
Figure 3: Schematic representation of
depolarized cathode technique [Source: Covestro
Deutschland AG]
Power requirement in such process is 1/3rd less than
Figure 4: Phosgenation Reaction for production of TDI
the power required in the regular process. i.e. Chlor-
Alkali electrolysis requires 2500kWh of energy per ton
of chlorine produced. Implementation of ODC might
Gas phase TDI production is successfully implemented
result in it coming down to around 1750kWh. Covestro,
by Bayer MaterialScience. The company invested 250
a German based company is of the first companies to
million euros to its chemical park in Dormagen. The
implement this on a large scale.
plant has an annual production capacity of 160,000
tons. Bayer has started various other plants for the
production of TDI across multiple countries.
This can lead to a significant reduction in the energy
requirement ensures the cost effectiveness of the Several other chemical industries have implemented
process. various process design modifications to have an energy
efficient processing of the plant.
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not all the craft breweries produce such a huge amount
of spent grain, so these small craft breweries
collaborate with the local bakers.
3.3.3 Reuse
Reusing in chemical industry is crucial. Using the final
desirable product “as it is” can be a subsequent in
effective waste management and limits the need for
sourcing of new raw material. Reusing allow to keep
material out of the waste stream with little or almost
3.3 Waste Processing and Management
no processing. Reusing requires less energy and capital
Waste that is generated during the process involved in in comparison to recycling. The US Environmental
chemical industries is to be carefully managed and Protection Agency recognises the importance of
minimized. The main aim of the Waste processing and reusing as an important method for reducing the
management is to achieve environmental compliance greenhouse gas emissions.
and reduce the process residuals. Waste processing
and management involves
In chemical industries plastics serve as the major
i) Reuse
example of reusing. Durable PET bottles can be reused
ii) Proper recycling multiple times. In general, the products are re-used
several times before it is being send to the recycling
iii) Energy recovery
unit. Paints and Lacquers can also re-used. Material
exchange is a good form of reuse, as such the chemicals
and solvents which not desirable product for a
3.3.1 Processing raw materials creates waste particular industry can be used as a necessary reactant
Raw materials when processed, surplus and waste for some other industry. This results in reduction of
streams are often created which are meant for production of monomers, waste management costs
fermentation for energy rather than being directly and would be a decisive factor in industry-wide savings
used by humans. However, these streams often as discussed before and ultimately would lead to
contain many beneficial fibres and minerals. So, these increase in profit margins.
surplus streams are processed so that the beneficial
minerals and fibres can be directly expended for
human consumption and need for further raw material 3.3.4 Recycling and recovery of waste
is minimized.
Recycling and recovery of the waste plays a major
3.3.2 Case study of waste management when considering the chemical industry. In the circular
economy, waste should represent the feedstock for
A case study regarding the use of waste for direct industrial process. Recycling can be broadly classified
human consumption comes from Netherlands. The into two parts:
main waste stream in Holland comes from the spent
grain, which is the waste generated after the brewing a) Mechanical or Non-chemical Recycling:
process. BrouwBrood, a Dutch company came up with Mechanical recycling as the name suggests
a solution to produce bread with the help of Brewer’s does not alter the chemical specifications of
spent grain (BSG). This enables the bakers to reduce the substance. This means that the waste
the use of the raw materials they use in preparation of collected can directly be used after certain
bread and also provides an efficient solution for the processing and is reinserted into the value
residual flows of the breweries. Craft beer breweries chain at the specific product industry for
produces a lot of these spent grains every month. similar or slightly relegated applications.
Companies like Heineken resell this BSG to other Recycling of the thermoplastics is a premiere
conciliators companies who sell this as cattle feed. But example of this type of recycling. However,
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product designs to use the mechanically available however not many of them are
recycled waste and its commercial maturity commercially mature to be used for efficient
must be taken into consideration. energy recovery.
b) Feedstock or chemical recycling: Since the
waste product cannot be used in the given 4. Implementation path and
chemical state, it is modified by breaking the
molecular bonds to recover the specified chain
timeframe of circular economy
of hydrocarbon required for the intermediate (CE)
chemical formations. Such a long chain of
It is not possible to implement the concept of circular
hydrocarbons is broken into precursors by the
economy in the chemical industries in sixtieth of an
means of plasma gasification and catalytic
hour. The process of its implementation within the
cracking. In the case of plastic recycling the
various sectors of the chemical industries is an intricate
given polymer is broken into its monomer and
process. New design principles, substantial capital
then further processed according to the
investment and commercial maturity of the
product specifications. However, the chemical
implemented changes requires a considerable time.
recycling for plastics is not completely
developed, so not all the processes are fully We cannot remove the wide acceptance of the linear
viable at this point. Only processes having model of economy overnight, it has been practiced for
reached its commercial maturity are glycolysis a long time and has been very acceptable economic
and methanolysis for the recycling of plastics. wise. However, we can gradually bend the ends of
linear model (i.e. Raw material and Waste) such that
after a specific period of time it becomes completely
3.3.5 Recovering Energy from waste. circular. The use of non-renewable resources as a
partial feedstock, Design modifications for an
Probably the most difficult step from the above all ecological operation of various chemical processes can
is the recovery of energy from the generated be implemented to limited chemical industries at first,
waste. The basic idea of ‘Energy from the waste’ is where it is economically viable. Similar type of
to recover the energy present in the molecules by application in other facets of the linear economy can
oxidation of hydrocarbons to produce CO2 which be enforced to an extent when circular model is
undergoes a catalytic reaction to produce new completely created.
chemical feedstock. The most obsolete hindrance
is the enabling the reactivity of the CO2, as it is More emphasis must be given on the qualitative aspect
thermodynamically stable and completely oxidised rather than quantitative. Chemical Leasing is one of the
molecule. Several other challenges faced are the major service-based business models which is based on
C/H is relatively low. Hence the most optimum the idea of shifting focus from ‘Volume to Value’.
solution is the selective hydrogenation of CO2 to Reverse Logistics is also one of the ways we can
shorter-chain product, such has CH3OH, HCOOH, decrease the timeframe of achieving the circular
CO, and other C2-C4 olefins. Iron-based catalysts model.
remains the most widely used for the
hydrogenation of CO2. Many other processes are
7
Figure 5: Implementation path for Circular Economy (Gradual bending of linear economy model)
5. Conclusion [3] Waste Minimization, recycling and reuse, Report by
World Health Organisation
Landscape is quickly changing. Sustainability of natural
resources is paramount. Right frameworks must be set [4] Food for circular economy, Netherlands
to ensure the circularity is implemented across the environmental assessment agency (PBL) policy brief.
chemical industries. The regenerative model is much
better than the high-consumption model of linear
economy. The arrival of circular economy will present
significant challenges in terms of managing the
transition of the various assets in the chemical
industries and the barriers in achieving the economic
viability of it. But this could also prove to be major
opportunity for chemical industry across the world to
innovate and be the linchpin in implementing circular
economy across various sectors of other industries and
thereby increasing their profit margins and preserving
the natural resources.
References
[1] J. Garcia Serna, L. Perez Barigon, M.J. Cocero, New
trends for design towards sustainability in chemical
engineering: Green Engineering, Chemical Engineering
Journal, February 2007, page no. 7-30
[2] Jouni Korohen, Antero Honkasalo, Jyri Seppala,
Circular Economy: the concepts and its limitations,
Ecological Economics Journal, July 2017, page no. 37-
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