Repolywise, an Oxford-based startup, has announced the development of its 'Atomic Scissors' technology, which reduces plastic waste to base molecules for reprocessing. The company, founded by Oxford University researchers, has received £375,000 in grants from Innovate UK to progress the application for plastic recycling.

The 'Atomic Scissors' technology utilises a novel hydrocracking process to break down waste plastics at the atomic level. In its current lab-scale capacity, the company claims its technology has demonstrated efficient, selective, and high-yielding degradation of assorted polyolefin samples.

Dr Bryan Ng, Founder and CEO of Repolywise, commented: "Our Atomic Scissors technology represents a crucial breakthrough in tackling the global plastic waste crisis. By transforming hard-to-recycle plastics into valuable raw materials, we're not just reducing waste — we're enabling a circular economy that redefines how we produce and reuse plastics for a sustainable future."

Atomic Scissors technology

The Atomic Scissors process selectively converts plastic waste into propane in a one-step process. This propane is then sold to the petrochemical industry, where it is dehydrogenated or cracked into olefins before being used in the production of new polyolefins, such as polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

Repolywise's technology is designed to process polyolefin plastics, which account for approximately 50 per cent of the 330 billion kilograms of plastics produced globally each year. These types of plastics are particularly challenging to recycle using conventional methods, often leading to downcycling into lower-quality materials.

The company claims that their process offers a more efficient, higher-yielding, and lower energy solution compared to current hydrocracking techniques. This could potentially lead to the recycling of these materials back into high-quality polypropylene, ready for reuse in the production of new plastic products.

This announcement comes against a backdrop of growing concern about the health impact of waste microplastics, and scepticism about the scope of chemical recycling techniques to play an effective role in addressing this.

Scaling challenges and future plans

While the Atomic Scissors technology represents a potential breakthrough in chemical recycling of plastic, scaling the process remains a challenge. The current lab-scale process handles 2 grams in a batch process, with plans to increase this to 2 kilograms in the next phase of development.

Repolywise aims to achieve a commercial-scale capacity of 2 tonnes in a semi-flow process, representing a key milestone towards industrial application. The company states that its technology operates under relatively mild conditions with a highly selective process, potentially contributing to reduced costs compared to other chemical recycling methods.

To ensure environmental and operational compliance, Repolywise is working towards obtaining ISCC certification, which will validate its mass balance approach and ensure the sustainability of its processes.

The £375,000 in grants from Innovate UK is supporting further research and development at the AgileLab at Oxford University Begbroke Science Park to enhance and scale up the Atomic Scissors technology.