Circular Economy

Circular economy is a system-oriented approach that encompasses industrial processes and economic activities along the entire value chain. The approach aims at a climate-neutral and resource-efficient economy in which the value of products, materials and resources is preserved for as long as possible. In concrete terms, this means decoupling economic growth from the use of resources by returning valuable raw materials to the cycle after the use phase. Better use of resources and circular management are becoming increasingly important for Evonik in view of planetary boundaries and the diversification of raw materials. As a specialty chemicals company, Evonik is an integral part of various value chains and has in-depth knowledge and expertise about the processes, technologies, opportunities, and risks of upstream and downstream players. With our activities, we counteract the insufficient availability of resources in the supply chain and in our production and make them less dependent on finite fossil and other non-circular resources. In addition, the circular economy opens up new business opportunities and attractive growth opportunities for Evonik. 

Circular economy considers the entire life cycle of products. The focus is on the manufacturing phase, the use phase and the recyclability of products. In the manufacturing phase, recycled, bio-based or CO₂-based sources are used as a substitute for fossil raw materials. Products in the use phase are characterized by durability, repairability and reuse. In order to close the material cycles, products must be recyclable or biodegradable at the end of their life cycle. As a result, less material is sent to landfill and incineration. Evonik sees the circular economy as a fundamental transformation of the way we do business. We support all business activities, technologies and innovations that contribute to the acceleration of environmentally and economically sensible measures towards circular value chains. The circular economy is one of Evonik's top 3 key topics. In 2023, we continued to advance our activities in this area. So we started to develop a policy paper on the circular economy. This is to be published on the Evonik website in 2024. In doing so, we are reaffirming the importance and significance of circularity for Evonik's business activities. 

Circular economy considers the entire life cycle.

In 2023, we expanded the former Global Circular Plastics Program into the Global Circular Economy Program. In this way, we are strengthening the further development of our business activities in the direction of a circular economy, including all of Evonik's business areas. Thus, in addition to the previous focus on plastics cycles, circular raw materials of all kinds as well as value chains in all Evonik markets are now also being considered. With this in mind, we have transformed our previous goals into a new one. 

Goal: 

• More than €1 billion in additional revenue per year from circular products and technologies by 2030 

The Global Circular Economy Program comprises short- to medium-term activities with a clear focus on business developments. Examples of our activities are: 

• the use of circular raw materials, 

• the development of solutions for mechanical and chemical recycling technologies, 

• the identification of business opportunities and the development of circular business models, and 

• the intensive examination of and the design of new value chains. 

As a specialty chemicals company, Evonik is at the heart of various value chains. The further development of our technologies and products and the change of our raw material platforms is therefore a basic prerequisite for enabling the circular economy. In addition to our own ambitions, the main drivers are the voluntary commitments of our customers and other companies along the value chain, which are formulating increasingly ambitious CO₂ reduction targets and targets for the use of circular materials.  

For Evonik, cooperation with partners along the entire value chain is an important key to contributing to the success of the transformation towards a circular economy. Evonik differentiates its circular economy activities into upstream (upstream), own (gate-to-gate) and downstream (downstream) activities. 

Upstream 

The procurement of circular raw materials includes bio-based, recycled (bio-based and non-bio-based) and CO₂-based materials. Evonik's goal is to increase the use of circular raw materials in order to reduce the consumption of finite resources, reduce its own footprint, and, in particular, reduce Scope 3 emissions along the value chain. To this end, we examine technical, economic, ecological and social aspects and develop new business models. In the year under review, for example, Evonik introduced the ECOHANCE® product range. As part of this program, main care products are produced based on post-industrial plant residue streams. For example, the raw material source for the product ECOHANCE® Care PSC3 is a fatty acid-enriched olive oil that cannot be used for food production. This process therefore does not compete with the cultivation of food and contributes to the conservation of primary plant resources. In addition, the expansion of transparent supply chains is supported, also with the involvement of smaller suppliers.  

In the year under review, Evonik entered into a partnership with REMONDIS, one of the world's leading e-recycling companies, to establish a cycle for sustainable polyurethane recycling. As part of this cooperation, REMONDIS supplies us with used mattress foams as a circular raw material. The limited availability of circular raw materials remains a challenge due to regionally fluctuating supply, infrastructures currently under construction and legal frameworks. 

Gate to Gate 

have always been of great importance in Evonik's production. We are driving our activities towards a circular economy with a wide range of measures. These include:  

• Measuring and reporting on the amount of waste generated in our operations in line with our goal of reducing production waste 

• Increasing resource efficiency through continuous optimisation of production processes to avoid and minimise waste 

• Harnessing the benefits of integrated production facilities and systems for systematic waste management in line with the waste hierarchy 

• as well as the reduction, reuse and recycling of the packaging used for our products 

In accordance with the legal waste hierarchy applicable in the EU, waste from the company's own production is avoided primarily through continuous process optimisation of operational processes and the use of the advantages of integrated production sites and integrated systems. In addition, waste must be recycled or used to generate energy. It is only as a third option that these are safely eliminated. In the period from 2021 to 2030, Evonik aims to reduce the specific amount of production waste in relation to the production volume by 10 percent.  

Our goal is to further close material cycles and design packaging in a more sustainable way. In this way, we also want to make a contribution to reducing our CO₂ footprint in the future. Evonik is already using plastic packaging and bulk packaging materials with recycled content at various Evonik sites. The supply of more sustainable packaging alternatives has improved significantly, not least due to the tightening of national and European packaging regulations, the introduction of the plastic tax in various EU countries and increased demand from customers. The packaging type, appearance and handling (filling, palletizing and transport) of sustainable packaging alternatives are retained. 

We are striving to steadily increase the recycled content of packaging. In the case of the categories with a low recycling rate, there are regulatory or technical barriers to an increase. We address this in exchange with representatives of packaging technology within the German Chemical Industry Association (VCI) as well as with customers. We can report the following recycling rates per category.  

In the area of rigid large containers, we work with different approaches depending on the product, process and customer to increase the recycling rate. These include the reuse of washed IBCs (Intermediate Bulk Containers; Recycling rate: 100 percent) as well as rebottelized IBCs with new plastic inner bladder, reused steel cage and pallet (recycling rate: 70 percent to 80 percent). In other areas, we use IBCs with a plastic inner bladder made of around 40 percent recycled material, called PCR (post-consumer recyclate), which results in a recycling rate of 60 percent to 65 percent. Since 2022, the first pilot sites in Germany have already been using PCR IBCs for non-hazardous goods in filling. In the year under review, we expanded this activity to other locations and containers. The plan is to roll this out locally, nationally and globally in the future. Since October 2023, we have also been using PCR IBCs and 220-litre plastic drums in the field of dangerous goods. The plan is to roll this out locally, nationally and globally. In addition, with the increased use of reusable load securing systems such as the DrumGuard system, we are reducing the consumption of wrap-around stretch films and thus reducing plastic waste for our customers.

Downstream 

Over the course of product use and at the end of the product's lifetime, Evonik offers solutions that support the circular economy of customers and consumers. In this way, our additives increase the shelf life of our customers' products and thus contribute to resource conservation. In addition, the additives improve mechanical and chemical recycling processes as well as recyclates. In the field of mechanical recycling, Evonik provides a comprehensive portfolio of additives with which we support our partners in optimizing the efficiency and quality of their circular processes and products. A long service life and good usability of products ensure that the use of primary resources and waste is reduced. For example, our additives for building protection protect the stability and aesthetics of concrete structures from weather and environmental influences.  

Among other things, our surfactants can be used to wash off printing inks from used plastics more quickly and to reduce ink residues in recycled plastics. In addition, less water remains on the plastic after washing, so that time and energy can be saved in the drying process. Our additives also minimize odor and improve the processing and mechanical product properties of recyclates. As a result, higher quantities of secondary materials with improved recyclate qualities can be achieved. In addition, we are working in a consortium with BMW and other companies along the value chain to achieve the goal of enabling a high proportion of recyclates for car components and thus circularity in the automotive sector. 

In 2023, Evonik continued its collaboration with Wildplastic, a start-up that promotes the collection of plastic waste from nature through fair payment in countries with inadequate waste management systems. Recycled plastics are reused, for example, as high-quality garbage bags or shipping bags. In addition to providing additives for the washing and processing process, we offer Wildplastic an extensive network and at the same time support the creation of jobs in the countries concerned.  

With our technologies and products, we make it possible to recycle end-of-life tires into high-quality applications and thus avoid incineration. Our partners replace fossil bitumen in road asphalt with tyre granules and thus contribute to a reduction in the ecological footprint. In addition to lower traffic noise (whisper asphalt) and lower fuel consumption of the cars, the road surface is significantly more durable, recyclable and requires less maintenance. 

Chemical recycling offers a solution to waste streams that cannot be mechanically eco-efficiently or technically recycled. This applies, for example, to mixed, heavily soiled or colored thermoplastics or thermosets that cannot be melted. To this end, Evonik provides its partners with additives, absorbents, catalysts, and process know-how. In this way, we enable the chemical recycling of plastic residues that would otherwise be incinerated or landfilled. 

In this way, we contribute to the production of pyrolysis oils in the case of highly mixed or polluted plastic streams. In this process, plastic streams are converted into a pyrolysis oil at high temperature in the absence of air, which can be used as a substitute for fossil naphtha in the cracker in order to provide basic building blocks for polymer synthesis. The technology is currently still on a pilot scale. In order to contribute to meeting the ecological and economic requirements on a large scale, we have expanded our range of products for the production of pyrolysis oils. Evonik supplies absorbents and catalysts for the separation of contamination and purification, as well as additives that enable the pyrolysis oils to be processed at low temperatures. With our SiYPro™ additives, we help our partners to make further processing in the cracker more robust and safer. Another way to keep very contaminated or mixed plastic streams in circulation is the production of synthesis gas, for which we also provide purification technologies such as absorbents. 

Even in the case of PET packaging and colored PET plastics that are unsuitable for mechanical recycling, our alcoholate catalysts and process technologies ensure that they can be recycled at the end of their life cycle. We assume that in the future, alkoxides will play an important role in the chemical recycling of PET plastics. Here, Evonik is expanding its global business with alcoholates with a new plant in Singapore. In addition, other classes of materials will also be important in the future. For example, Evonik has developed processes for chemical recycling that can be used, for example, to recover the basic building blocks from polyurethanes and use them for the production of new polyurethanes. Evonik provides know-how in catalysts and process technology, while the partnership with REMONDIS secures the supply of circular raw materials and contributes expertise in post-use recycling logistics. 

Since the circular economy goes beyond recycling approaches and also includes the production and use phase of products, Evonik technologies are also used in design for recycling and design for circularity. For example, the heat-sealing binder (DEGALAN)® makes it possible for packaging materials such as yoghurt pots to be made from just one material and thus recycled. Other examples include a 3D-printed mono-material concept car seat or the mono-material toothbrush: polyamide 12 replaces previous material mixtures, making cost-efficient and ecological mechanical recycling easily possible. The concept is intended to inspire other product designers to reduce the variety of materials as much as possible. New business models, such as leasing models, can also enable such concepts in more price-sensitive markets. At Evonik, we are complementing the technical approach with the use of bio-based products, which are particularly important for our Nutrition & Care division. An important technology platform here is our biosurfactants, which represent an increasingly relevant raw material basis for various product ranges. For products and ingredients that are difficult or impossible to collect and recycle due to their nature or application, an alternative solution for circularity is needed. Evonik offers this, for example, with biosurfactants that are based entirely on renewable raw materials. For example, our rhamnolipids are used in cosmetics or household cleaners. The organic sugar-based products are mild, highly efficient and also completely biodegradable. This means that they become part of the biological cycle again at the end of the use phase. 

Evonik is a member of the European Circular Plastics Alliance. This EU initiative aims to introduce 10 million tonnes of plastic recyclate into the European market annually from 2025. In addition, we have expanded our involvement with Plastics Europe in Germany and Europe as well as the European chemical association Cefic, all of which promote circularity. We are also a member of Circular Economy for Flexible Packaging, an initiative that promotes circular solutions for flexible packaging along the value chain. We also support the "Circular Valley" initiative of WupperTalBeWegung e.V., which connects start-ups in the field of circular solutions with industry. In addition, it offers representatives of industry, science, politics and culture a platform for constructive dialogue in order to promote the transformation towards a circular economy. 

The circular economy thrives on networks and partnerships. Frameworks for a common understanding of the activities are therefore essential. As a member of the WBCSD, we continue to be involved in working groups that deal with the standardization and evaluation of circularity both in the chemical industry and along the value chain.  

Evonik is participating in the Carbon2Chem research project. The aim of this project is to convert exhaust gases from steel mills into chemical products such as ammonia for nitrogen fertilizers or into the precursor methanol. We are a partner of the EU joint project ReProSolar for the complete recycling of photovoltaic modules. In this context, for the first time, all components of old modules will be completely recovered. In this way, pure silicon, silver and glass, among other things, can be returned to the processing industry. 

In the "Circular Economy – Innovation Engine for the Economy" (CEWI) project, Evonik is working with representatives from companies, politics, and other groups on models for 

End-of-life vehicle recycling in closed cycles.  

Together with companies in the plastics value chain in North Rhine-Westphalia, we are committed to a project that aims to set up a network platform and a pilot factory for practical research into recycling technologies until they are ready for the market.