June 20, 2025 15:36

The first Italian chemical recycling plant approaching industrial scale was inaugurated yesterday in Mantua, Northern Italy, by Versalis – less than two years after laying the foundation stone. In recent weeks, the first production tests were successfully completed.

Although the plant is mainly dedicated to optimizing the proprietary Hoop pyrolysis process (developed in partnership with the Italian company S.R.S.) in preparation for the construction of the first industrial-scale unit in Priolo, Sicily, the demonstration facility already has a treatment capacity of 6,000 tonnes per year of incoming (pre-treated) plastic waste, with an output of around 5,000 t/y of pyrolysis oil, intended to replace fossil feedstock in petrochemical processes, such as ethylene or propylene production.

The Hoop plant consists of four sections: a storage area for the incoming feedstock, secondary raw materials (in blue in the model), which, as mentioned, arrives in granular, pre-treated form (classified as SRM - Secondary Raw Material, not waste); the Reaction area (red), where the pyrolysis process takes place at temperatures between 400 and 500°C in the absence of oxygen; the Condensation and fractionation area (green), where the gas is first cooled and then purified, with recovery of gaseous by-products; and finally, storage of pyrolysis oil area (blue).

The core of the Hoop technology – explained Fabio Assandri, Head of R&D, Licensing and Projects Development at Versalis – lies in optimizing operating parameters, such as pressure and temperature, based on the mix of post-consumer plastics fed into the plant, which are inherently heterogeneous. “The Hoop technology relies on a high thermal performance pyrolysis reactor with high-level control over operating conditions, real-time online monitoring of the feedstock composition, and AI-based models to combine data and adjust reactor parameters to ensure maximum yield, which can be up to 20% higher compared to static conditions.”

This technology, which complements mechanical recycling, makes it possible to convert mixed plastic waste into feedstock that can be used to produce new plastic materials suitable for all applications, including food contact packaging and pharmaceutical packaging.

The next step in the SC-Hoop project is the construction of a larger plant, with a capacity of around 40,000 tonnes per year, in Priolo, as part of the Eni-Versalis Chemical Transformation Plan for its base chemicals operations.
As Adriano Alfani, CEO of Versalis, told us, the company has already submitted the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) application for the project, while the final investment decision (FID) is expected in the second half of 2026, with the goal of completing the Sicilian plant between late 2028 and early 2029. As for potential licensing of the technology, it is not currently a priority, but not ruled out either. “For now, we are focused on Priolo,” Alfani concluded.

SC-Hoop, Versalis’ project name for the realization of the demo plant based on Hoop technology at Mantua, is the only Italian large scale project to be awarded funding in the 2023 EU Innovation Fund call, out of 239 proposals submitted and 41 selected overall. 

© Polimerica -  Reproduction prohibited, all rights reserved