Sustainability in the supply chain is an important decision criterion for municipalities, utilities, and grid operators. Plastic pipes generally have a very good environmental footprint, especially compared to other materials. An overview of recycling, bio-based materials, and Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), which evaluate the entire product life cycle.
In many areas, such as water supply, wastewater disposal, or construction, plastic pipes are indispensable today. Nevertheless, due to their fossil origin and potential environmental impact, they are at the center of the sustainability discussion. However, plastic pipes are already more sustainable than their reputation suggests.
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Recycling in Plastic Pipe Manufacturing
egeplast primarily processes the thermoplastic polyethylene and reuses 100% of the internal waste generated during the start-up and shut-down of production lines. Thus, every gram of plastic ultimately becomes a pipe, and no material is wasted.
The proportion of purchased recycled materials is low because – due to the very long service life of plastic pipes – there are simply few returns. Because plastic pipes fulfill their purpose for a very long time, and there is no
reason to replace these pipes.
In principle, commercially available thermoplastic plastic recyclates can be easily fed into the processing stream and processed into new pipes. However, the quality of these recycled materials is not comparable to that of the originally used materials. Therefore, recycled materials are currently not used for pressure pipes or even potable water pipes, but only in the areas of non-pressure wastewater disposal, rainwater management, and cable protection.
Existing Recycling Approaches
Currently, there are various methods for recycling plastics:
Post-Consumer Recyclates (PCR):
Reuse of plastics from household waste (e.g., from packaging) in pipe production
Post-Industrial Recyclates (PIR):
Use of industrial waste, e.g., production residues from own manufacturing
Multilayer Structures:
Use of recyclate in the core of the pipes, while the outer layer consists of virgin material (for hygienic or technical requirements)
A distinction is made here between chemical and physical recycling.
In chemical recycling, the polymers are broken down at a molecular level into
their chemical basic building blocks.
After decomposition, these can then be used again for the production of new plastics, which have the quality of virgin material. Unfortunately, chemical recycling is very energy- and cost-intensive.
In contrast, with physical recycling, the chemical structure remains untouched.
In this form of recycling, plastics are shredded and then reprocessed, so that new pipes can be extruded from this material in the future. egeplast uses mechanical recycling of its own post-industrial recyclates to fulfill its ecological responsibility and work in a more resource-efficient manner.
Sustainability in Focus
Furthermore, there are approaches to produce the base material for our pipes, polyethylene, not from fossil raw materials, but from renewable raw materials. These so-called
Since bio-based plastics, which differ from fossil-based materials only in their origin but not in their quality, are only available to a limited extent, mass balance approaches have been established, so that a manufacturer can precisely document which customer receives which raw material:
With the help of the mass balance system, it is accounted for how much sustainable raw material was used. A portion of the polymers produced from it may be declared as “ISCC PLUS certified” – corresponding to the proportion of sustainable raw materials used.
The end product is not physically marked, but the sustainable proportion is mathematically distributed using the mass balance system. This allows sustainable raw materials to be used without requiring an adjustment to the production process. The certified proportion is documented to enable verifiable and transparent sustainability communication with customers.
More Transparency Thanks to EPDs
How sustainable various construction products are can depend heavily on the manufacturing process, in addition to the raw material. Is green energy used? Are there closed loops for cooling water, etc.? These aspects can be objectively compared using environmental labels such as EPDs.
In contrast to other certifications, the sustainability values of EPDs are not only based on production, but refer to the entire product life cycle of a product. This standardized procedure allows the end customer an easy comparison to also consider sustainability in decision-making.
