LX Hausys Develops Technology to Extract PVC from Waste Building Materials

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] LX Hausys announced on the 8th that it has developed the first domestic technology to extract and recover PVC from waste polyvinyl chloride (PVC) windows and flooring materials.

This technology removes various additives from construction materials made from PVC raw materials and recovers high-purity PVC, opening the way to recycle PVC raw materials in waste construction materials, which had been difficult due to technical limitations.

PVC is one of the widely used polymer materials found in various construction materials, construction pipes, and wire coatings. However, due to the chlorine content in the PVC polymer, there are restrictions on chemical and thermal reuse, and difficulties in removing various additives added during PVC processing. As a result, PVC polymers themselves have not been recovered and recycled. Instead, waste construction materials have been crushed into scrub form and mixed into existing product manufacturing processes for recycling.

LX Hausys, using its proprietary technology called 'Selective Matching Elimination Technology (SMET),' selectively removes various additives such as plasticizers and stabilizers included during the manufacturing of PVC windows and flooring materials, enabling the extraction of high-purity recycled PVC (rPVC) with physical properties equivalent to virgin PVC.

The recycled PVC recovered by LX Hausys' technology can be directly used in the manufacture of new window and flooring products without degrading product characteristics. Internal tests showed that it meets all standards for heavy metals and phthalate plasticizer content set by various environmental regulations.

In particular, the recycled PVC extracted from waste construction materials can be used not only for construction materials but also for other PVC processed products, making it a technology highly regarded for significantly contributing to the expansion of recycled PVC use in Korea.

An LX Hausys official stated, "We will gradually promote securing mass production processes for recycled PVC applying SMET technology in cooperation with domestic chemical process specialists in the future."