In order to better realize the recycling of expanded polystyrene, Finnfoam built a polystyrene chemical recycling facility in Saloon. Used foam insulation materials, even if they are dirty, can be recycled into insulation raw materials, which is both energy-saving and economical. . The recycling process and the new environmentally friendly solvent it uses have been patented. Finnfoam, a well-known Finnish manufacturing company, is building a pilot plant in Salo for the chemical recycling of polystyrene, i.e. XPS (extruded polystyrene) and EPS (expanded polystyrene) insulation materials. The total investment value exceeds 10 million euros.

A few years ago, polystyrene was recycled mainly through mechanical recycling, and recycling machinery was the main force in the expanded polystyrene recycling market. In recent years, thanks to the continuous development of science and technology, chemical recycling has made rapid progress and is becoming more and more on the right track. Compared with mechanical recycling, the main advantage of chemical recycling is that the recycled material is purer, or it can undergo chemical changes with the participation of other substances to form new substances. Although this recycling technology is excellent, it has not been popularized until now, which is also a fatal shortcoming. At present, the usage of expanded polystyrene not only in Europe but also around the world is too large and the pace of waste production is too fast. Therefore, we need a recycling method with lower cost, simpler operation and higher popularity to help with recycling. This is also the main reason why mechanical recycling methods have endured for so long.

At Finnfoam, plastic is considered a safe, durable and inexpensive material. For example, in the field of safe insulation with moisture-proof technology, plastic is the absolutely superior material choice in terms of its performance and resource efficiency. The pollution problems associated with plastics mainly arise from the changes that occur to plastics after use.

Expanded polystyrene foam can be easily recycled after use. GREENMAX polystyrene compactor can recycle expanded polystyrene and extruded polystyrene very well. A compression of 50:1 can be achieved only through the two steps of crushing and screw compression. Recycling with cold pressing technology also places fewer restrictions on materials. GREENMAX customizes polystyrene compactors that are not completely similar according to the different situations of customers.

We do not deny the advantages of chemical recycling methods, but at present, if we want to truly realize large-scale polystyrene recycling, we still have to place our hopes mainly on polystyrene compactor. Not only in Finland, but also in the whole of Europe, mechanical recycling can be used. Mainly, chemical recycling method is an auxiliary strategy.