Within the Interreg France-Wallonie-Vlaanderen CircoPlast project, we are pleased to announce an upcoming online webinar: Chemical Recycling of Polyurethane (PU) Foams by Reactive Extrusion: From Waste to Resource
📅 25 September 2026
🕥 10:30 – 11:30
👤 Speaker: Fouad Laoutid, Ph.D - HDR – R&D Scientific Leader at Materia Nova
PU foams are widely used in applications such as thermal insulation, furniture, automotive components, and construction materials. However, due to their highly crosslinked structure, PU foams cannot be recycled through conventional melt-processing techniques, making their end-of-life management a significant technological and environmental challenge. Conventional disposal routes, including landfilling and incineration, are increasingly questioned due to their environmental impact and their inability to recover the intrinsic value of polyurethane materials. As a result, innovative recycling solutions are needed to support the transition towards a more circular economy.
As part of the CIRCOPLAST project, innovative solutions are being developed to convert plastic waste into valuable secondary raw materials. In this context, polyurethane foam recycling offers a promising route to support circularity and reduce the use of virgin resources.
A particular focus will be placed on Materia Nova's patented chemical recycling technology based on reactive extrusion (REX). This innovative solvent-free process enables the depolymerization of polyurethane foams into valuable recycled polyols through a continuous, efficient, and scalable approach. Compared with conventional chemical recycling methods, reactive extrusion offers several advantages, including solvent-free operation, shorter processing times, enhanced process efficiency, and flexibility towards various PU waste streams, including both flexible and rigid foams. Moreover, the technology relies on equipment that are already widely available in the polymer industry, facilitating industrial implementation while requiring limited capital investment compared with conventional recycling plants. The webinar will also present the chemical and physicochemical characterization of the recycled polyols, demonstrating their quality and suitability for the production of new polyurethane materials.
The webinar will also demonstrate how recycled polyols can be successfully valorized to produce new polyurethane foams. Participants will discover how these recycled feedstocks can be incorporated into polyurethane formulations while maintaining key performance requirements. Particular attention will be given to the development of flame-retarded foams that combine circularity and fire safety, as well as to the evaluation of their thermal insulation properties, mechanical performance, and fire behavior. The influence of recycled polyol content on the final foam properties and overall performance will also be discussed.
Â
Program
- General introduction to the CIRCOPLAST project
- Context and challenges of polyurethane foam recyclingÂ
- Positioning of the CIRCOPLAST projectÂ
- Innovative Materia Nova’s PATENTED process: chemical recycling by reactive extrusion
- Characterization of recycled products
- Reformulation of flame-retarded PU foams using recycled polyolsÂ
- Overall assessment and perspectives
Join our webinar to discover an innovative patented recycling process that transforms end-of-life PU foams into valuable raw materials for new high-performance applications. This session will highlight how advanced recycling technologies can support a more circular and sustainable polyurethane industry.
👉 More information and registration: https://lnkd.in/eMFKYmkk
We look forward to sharing insights and exchanging with you on circular solutions for PU foam recycling.
Speaker(s)
Fouad Laoutid - R&D scientific leader at Materia Nova
Contacts
Rim Bitar
Kortrijk
Researcher "Melt Processing Technologies"
rbi@centexbel.be
+32 56 29 27 06
