Chemical Recycling vs Mechanical Recycling: Technology Comparison, Economics, and Strategic Selection Guide

## Chemical Recycling vs Mechanical Recycling: Technology Comparison, Economics, and Strategic Selection Guide

### Technology Overview

**Mechanical Recycling**:
– Process: Sorting, washing, melting, pelletizing
– Input: Single-stream, clean plastic
– Output: Lower grade than virgin
– Energy: 50-70% less than virgin

**Chemical Recycling**:
– Process: Depolymerization, pyrolysis, gasification
– Input: Mixed, contaminated, degraded plastic
– Output: Virgin-quality monomers/oil
– Energy: Higher than mechanical

### Economics Comparison

| Factor | Mechanical | Chemical |
|——–|———–|———-|
| Capital cost | $5-20M | $50-200M |
| Operating cost | $200-400/t | $500-1,000/t |
| Feedstock cost | $200-500/t | $100-300/t |
| Product price | $800-1,500/t | $1,200-2,000/t |
| Margin | 10-20% | 15-25% |
| Scale | 10-50K t/y | 50-200K t/y |

### Strategic Selection

**Choose Mechanical When**:
– Feedstock is clean and sorted
– Application tolerates property variation
– Lower capital budget
– Faster deployment needed

**Choose Chemical When**:
– Feedstock is mixed/contaminated
– Virgin-quality output required
– Large-scale operation planned
– Long-term investment horizon

### Hybrid Approaches

**Tandem Systems**:
– Mechanical for clean streams
– Chemical for residuals
– Maximum value recovery
– Optimized economics

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**Keywords**: chemical recycling, mechanical recycling, technology comparison, recycling economics, strategic selection