Another multinational resin firm is signing up to do business with pyrolysis company Nexus Circular LLC, this time in Texas.
Dow Inc. is agreeing to purchase the output for a new plastics recycling location in Dallas that will use chemical recycling to covert more than 26,000 metric tons of plastics into new feedstock. Both sides have signed what is being described as "a detailed letter of intent" for the project.
The new work expands an existing relationship between the two companies. Dow previously awarded Nexus Circular a grant to develop pre-processing of post-consumer plastics collected through the Hefty Energy Bag program in Cobb County, Ga. Hefty Energy Bag uses residential curbside collection to divert hard-to-recycle plastics that would otherwise be thrown away.
"Expanding our past, scaled success with Nexus to drive production of high-quality circular feedstocks, the new facility in Dallas marks an important step in meeting unmet market demand for circular plastics in Texas and other markets," said Manav Lahoti, Dow's global sustainability director for hydrocarbons, in a statement.
Dow released news of another chemical recycling project, with Mura Technology Ltd., July 21.
News of the collaboration comes just a couple weeks after Nexus Circular, which operates a commercial-scale pyrolysis plant in Atlanta, signed a memorandum of understanding with resin maker Braskem SA to develop another pyrolysis plant in the Chicago area.
Braskem, already an investor in Nexus, plans to take output from that plant expected to process 30,000 metric tons of used plastics each year.
Nexus Circular President Eric Hartz, during an interview earlier this month with Plastics News discussing the Braskem deal, indicated this is a busy time as his company works to create multiple pyrolysis locations.
"We're on a tear of rapid growth. The demand has been tremendous," Hartz said at time.
Nexus Circular converts recycled plastics through pyrolysis, which uses pressure and heat in the absence of oxygen to deconstruct plastics into their molecular constituents for reformulation.
The company targets plastics that already are missed by traditional recycling efforts and views itself as a complement to traditional mechanical recycling efforts. "We are not trying to pull from other sources," Hartz previously said.
Clint Thompson is chief commercial officer for Nexus Circular. He talked about the new letter of intent as well as the company's aspirations for growth.
"With this meaningful LOI, we'll be better positioned to collect and convert more landfill-bound waste plastics into new materials using advanced recycling in markets worldwide," Thompson said in a statement.
Nexus Circular has a commercial operation in Atlanta that has handled more than 5.5 million pounds of used plastics, the company said. Along with Braskem, Nexus also counts Printpack and Chevron Phillips Chemical as backers along with lead investor Cox Enterprises.