In a recently published profile, Lux Research Inc. rated Ioniqa Technologies. Ioniqa Technologies at its highest score: 'Strong Positive.' According to Charles Willard, analyst at Lux Research, "Ioniqa's broadly applicable 'platform' technology has made it a leading competitor and all customers interested in licensing a PET depolymerization technology should approach Ioniqa."
Ioniqa is the first of many new chemical recyclers to reach industrial scale. Production at a new plant in the Netherlands will be optimized and ramped up to full capacity of 10,000 tons per year in the coming year. At that point, the company will move to a licensing strategy for major brands, plastic producers and waste collectors, among others.
Major brands, such as Coca-Cola and Unilever, previously acknowledged that Ioniqa's industrial plant is a step toward its longer-term sustainability goals. "Ioniqa's multi-purpose catalyst gives it an advantage in the race to make polyester textile waste streams suitable for food-safe materials as well," adds Charles Willard.
Ioniqa has developed a catalytic process to produce the highest quality raw materials for food-grade PET packaging. The key component of Ioniqa's process is a catalyst that solves some common process challenges. Ioniqa's process enables the upcycling of low-cost raw materials that are not currently recycled, such as colored bottles, multilayer food and non-food materials.
"Of course we are very proud this review from Lux Research and their outspoken support of our technology," said Tonnis Hooghoudt, CEO and founder of Ioniqa. "Wouldn't it be great to reduce plastic waste instead of letting it grow: with our breakthrough technology in the near future, we plan to tap into larger markets for PET waste in the future, including textiles. This breakthrough saves huge amounts of oil and reduces CO2 by up to 75%. At the request of one of the major brands, we have previously made food-safe mayonnaise bottles from a dark sports shirt and have plans to demonstrate textiles as a raw material for food-safe packaging in large-scale, continuous operations in 1-2 years, so keep following us."
