CREAToR · Project

Turning Toxic Plastic Waste Into Reusable Raw Materials for Construction, Auto, and Aerospace

environmentTestedTRL 5

Imagine old electronics and building insulation sitting in a pile, destined for the incinerator because they contain toxic flame retardants that make them illegal to recycle. CREAToR figured out how to strip those harmful chemicals out using pressurized CO2 and plant-based solvents — like a deep-cleaning process for contaminated plastics. Once cleaned, the plastic becomes a legitimate raw material again, good enough for car interiors, insulation panels, and even aerospace parts. Instead of paying to burn waste, companies can now sell it as a recycled product.

By the numbers

>180 €/t

Current incineration cost for contaminated waste that CREAToR can redirect to recycling

Consortium partners across the full value chain

Countries represented in the consortium

Industrial partners including three recyclers

SMEs in the consortium

3x3 m

Scale of insulation demonstrator wall tested under different climate conditions

Aerospace component prototypes manufactured at real component scale

1-2 years

Targeted commercialisation timeline after project end (May 2023)

The business problem

What needed solving

Millions of tonnes of plastic waste from electronics and buildings cannot be recycled because they contain banned bromine flame retardants. Companies must pay over 180 €/t to incinerate this material, losing both the disposal cost and the value of the raw material. Meanwhile, manufacturers face growing pressure to use recycled content but cannot find compliant recycled plastics in sufficient quality.

The solution

What was built

CREAToR built continuous purification systems using supercritical CO2 and natural deep eutectic solvents in twin-screw extruders to strip banned flame retardants from waste plastics. They validated the output through three physical demonstrators: automotive interior parts, 3x3 m insulation walls, and aerospace component prototypes, plus a material quality classification scheme and smart tracking labels.

Audience

Who needs this

WEEE recyclers paying to incinerate contaminated plasticsConstruction demolition waste processorsInsulation panel manufacturers seeking recycled-content inputsAutomotive interior component suppliers with recycled-content targetsPlastic compounders looking for purified secondary raw materials

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Waste Management & Recycling

any

Target: WEEE recyclers and plastic waste processors

If you are a WEEE or construction waste recycler paying over 180 €/t to incinerate contaminated plastics — this project developed continuous purification technology using supercritical CO2 and twin-screw extruders that removes banned bromine flame retardants from your waste streams. The cleaned material becomes sellable secondary raw material instead of a disposal cost. The process was demonstrated to TRL 5 with real waste streams from both WEEE and building sectors.

Construction & Building Materials

mid-size

Target: Insulation panel manufacturers

If you are an insulation manufacturer looking for cheaper raw materials while meeting circular economy regulations — this project demonstrated recycled thermoplastic insulation panels at real scale, with a 3x3 m demonstrator wall tested under different climate conditions. The material comes from purified construction and electronics waste, classified under a harmonized quality scheme. This gives you a cost-competitive recycled input that meets regulatory requirements for hazardous substance removal.

Automotive & Aerospace

enterprise

Target: Interior component and lightweight parts manufacturers

If you are an automotive or aerospace parts manufacturer seeking recycled-content materials to meet sustainability targets — this project produced a 2D automotive interior demonstrator and 4 aerospace component prototypes from purified recycled thermoplastics. The materials were benchmarked against virgin alternatives with full LCA/LCC assessment. This lets you incorporate verified recycled content into production parts with documented performance data.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What does the purification process cost compared to current disposal?

The project data states that contaminated waste from building/construction and WEEE sectors currently costs over 180 €/t to incinerate. CREAToR's process converts this waste into sellable secondary raw material, flipping a disposal cost into a revenue stream. Exact processing costs per tonne were not published in the available data.

Can this scale to industrial volumes?

The technology was demonstrated to TRL 5 using continuous purification in twin-screw extruders, which are standard industrial equipment. The consortium includes 12 industrial partners, including three recyclers who provided real waste streams. The project objective states commercialisation was targeted within 1-2 years after the project ended in May 2023.

Who owns the IP and how can I license the technology?

The project was coordinated by Fraunhofer (Germany), a major applied research organization, with 18 consortium partners across 7 countries. IP is typically shared among consortium partners per the EU grant agreement. Contact the coordinator for licensing terms, especially for the supercritical CO2 and NADES-based purification processes.

Does the recycled material meet regulatory standards?

CREAToR specifically targets removal of already-banned bromine-containing flame retardants, directly addressing EU REACH and RoHS compliance barriers. The project developed a harmonized material quality classification scheme and smart labels for tracking material composition. Full LCA/LCC assessment was performed across the value chain.

What end products were actually demonstrated?

Three demonstrators were built: a 2D automotive interior part, insulation wall panels at approximately 3x3 m scale tested under different climate conditions, and 4 aerospace component prototypes with 8 kg of material for production repeatability testing. All used recycled thermoplastics with flame retardants removed.

How soon could we implement this?

The project ended in May 2023 with TRL 5 technology and a stated goal of commercialisation within 1-2 years. With 6 SMEs and 12 industrial partners in the consortium, multiple companies are positioned to offer this technology. Based on available project data, pilot-scale implementation should be achievable with consortium partner support.

Consortium

Who built it

CREAToR assembled 18 partners from 7 countries with a strong industry focus — 56% of the consortium are industrial players, including 6 SMEs and 12 industrial partners with three dedicated recyclers. This is not a lab-only exercise: the consortium covers the entire value chain from waste collection and sorting through purification to end-use in construction, automotive, and aerospace. Fraunhofer, one of Europe's largest applied research organizations, leads the coordination from Germany. The presence of actual recyclers, material processors, and end-user manufacturers means the technology was tested against real market requirements, not just academic benchmarks.

CENTRE SCIENTIFIQUE ET TECHNIQUE DE L INDUSTRIE TEXTILE BELGEparticipant · BE
TRANSFERCENTER FUR KUNSTSTOFFTECHNIK GMBHparticipant · AT
FUNDACION CIDAUTparticipant · ES
KUHNE LOGISTICS UNIVERSITY GGMBHparticipant · DE
TREEE SRLparticipant · IT
FUNDACION GAIKERparticipant · ES
OPENBARE VLAAMSE AFVALSTOFFENMAATSCHAPPIJparticipant · BE
MAIER TECHNOLOGY CENTRE S COOPthirdparty · ES
MAIER SCOOPparticipant · ES
RENEWI E-WASTE B.V.participant · NL
ITRB LTDparticipant · CY

How to reach the team

Fraunhofer Gesellschaft (DE) — contact via their technology transfer office or through SciTransfer for a facilitated introduction

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Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore licensing this flame retardant removal technology or sourcing purified recycled thermoplastics? SciTransfer can arrange a direct introduction to the right consortium partner for your use case.

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