General Manager Birhan DENKTAŞ
A recycling company in Bursa transforms 5 tons of plastic waste per hour into raw materials with its state-of-the-art automation system and brings it back into the economy.
At the facility in Kestel district, pet and high-density polyethylene wastes are subjected to pre-sorting, sorting and plastic crushing units, flotation, hot and cold washing, rinsing and drying processes.
After the processes, two types of raw materials are obtained in the form of flakes and granules. The raw materials, which are analyzed in the laboratory, are used in plastic industries in various countries, especially in Turkey.
At the facility, which operates with an environmentalist identity and zero waste principle, the water used during washing processes is also reused after various processes in the wastewater treatment unit at the facility.
Burkasan General Manager Birhan Denktaş told AA correspondent that they serve as a professional waste management company.
Stating that there is a serious demand for recycled raw materials, Denktaş said:
“By recycling PET and high-density polyethylene plastics, we produce a raw material that can be used as a substitute for the original material in the main industry. Pet material has many different areas of use. The most prominent of these is the textile industry. Pet bottles are used in polyester production. The PET bottles we produce are converted into fiber or yarn in textile enterprises and used as recycled raw material in many of the clothes. PET is also widely used in the packaging sector. High-density polyethylene is generally used in the packaging of products such as detergents and shampoos after recycling.”
Emphasizing that it is essential to produce recycled raw materials at maximum quality in order to turn them into a main product, a product that can be used in homes, Denktaş said that recycled raw materials can be used alone or with their originals in production.
“Bottles made from 100 percent recycled raw materials”
Stating that they sell raw materials to global enterprises, ready-to-wear, yarn and fiber producers, Denktaş said, “High-density polyethylene raw materials are used in their packaging within the scope of the project we carry out with Unilever. Bottles were produced from 100 percent recycled raw materials and offered for sale on market shelves.”
Referring to the importance of recycling plastic, Denktaş said, “When we recycle the material and turn it into raw material, in a sense, we are no longer dependent on something oil-derived and we can do this not once, but dozens of times. When we provide this cycle, we get maximum benefit with fewer resources.”
Explaining the production process, Facility Manager Beyzat Osmanoğlu said that PET and high-density polyethylene bottles come to the facility pressed and baled.
Stating that they separate both PET and high-density polyethylene at the same time in a single separation line, Osmanoğlu said, “The processing capacity of the facility is 2,500 tons per month and the raw material capacity is 1500 tons. We send the remaining waste that cannot be processed in the facility to incineration facilities for energy recovery.”
“We produce at a level equivalent to the original raw material”
Stating that there is a worldwide recycling movement and that many big brands have adopted the rule of using recycled raw materials in products or product packaging, Osmanoğlu continued his words as follows:
“Previously, the purpose of recycling was to produce 2nd quality raw materials. Nowadays, big companies want recycled raw materials that are equivalent to the original raw materials. We produce at a level equivalent to the original raw material with its physical and chemical properties. Raw materials take their place in stock to be used in the automotive, textile and packaging sectors. Companies make demands both at home and abroad, and we export and import the raw material.”
Osmanoğlu added that a plastic can be recovered and turned into raw material with only 5 percent of the energy spent until a plastic is obtained from the oil extracted from the soil.