INCREACE knowledge hub
Welcome to the INCREACE Knowledge Hub, your gateway to a wealth of insights and expertise in the field of recycled plastics. On this page, you will find an organized collection of resources that showcase the key findings from the INCREACE project, brought to you by a consortium of 19 expert organizations. Dive into this interactive infographic, explore comprehensive deliverables, and access content and guidelines that span the entire plastics value chain. Whether you are seeking cutting-edge knowledge, best practices, or detailed materials, this hub is designed to provide a seamless and user-friendly experience, connecting you to valuable learnings and the experts behind them.
This research examines how the color of plastics, particularly dark colors and the additives used to create them, affects sorting during recycling. Dark pigments, such as carbon black, tend to absorb a significant portion of Near-Infrared (NIR) light, modifying how the material reflects the signal. This makes it harder for NIR-based systems to detect the specific polymer type. As a result, sorting becomes less accurate, leading to contamination in recycled plastic streams. This research is highly relevant for recyclers, packaging manufacturers, policymakers, and designers.
Among the generated 2,600 kt of WEEE plastics in Europe, only 180 kt can be recycled using traditional recycling technologies, leaving the remainder potentially available for advanced recycling methods1. As the European Strategy for Plastics, part of the Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP), aims to increase the use of recycled plastics in new products, it is necessary to improve recycling strategies for higher WEEE plastic recycling rates.
Product designers play a key role in boosting the use of recycled plastics. Within INCREACE, we explore how design decisions can improve both the use of recyclates and the overall recyclability of products—especially in the electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) sector.
Policies and regulations play a key role in directing and accelerating the circular economy transition. These policies must often balance various objectives, such as promoting the use of recycled content and ensuring product and chemical safety.
Insights in potential solutions to enhance uptake of recycled plastics in added value products from a CE systems perspective, that’s what we are delivering. After all, a lot of companies have ambitions to increase the recycled content of their products and are looking for help to find the secondary resources that match their requirements, both with respect to quality and quantity.
One of the objectives of INCREACE is to empower people and communities to play their role in the circular plastics transition. Society plays a crucial role in the transition to a circular plastics economy. Both at the start of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) lifecycle through purchase and at the end of the useful life of these products through collection.
OUR FIVE BUSINESS CASES
Our business cases are the heart of our project. Here, you find dedicated content offering in-depth insights into their groundbreaking solutions and advancements.
