Heartsong
14th April 2011, 16:53
Tigard company turns plastic into oil
by Keely Chalmers, KGW staff
kgw.com
Posted on April 13, 2011 at 5:25 PM
Updated today at 7:11 AM
TIGARD, Ore. -- A Tigard company is turning plastic garbage into crude oil.
The company uses a patented process that converts ground up waste plastic into synthetic crude oil.
The plastic is ground down into small pieces. Those pieces are then put in large cartridges and loaded into processing vessels.
The solid plastic is first melted into a liquid, which is heated to a vapor state then condensed back into a liquid.
It's at that point the oil is separated from all the other chemicals and contaminants in the plastics.
"An old laundry basket is the kind of thing you wouldn't be encouraged to put in your recycling bin," explained Chris Ulum, CEO of Agilyx Corporation.
But now, Ulum says, his company can turn that old plastic basket into black gold. It’s developed a technology that can take all those difficult to recycle plastics and turn them into crude oil.
"It’s the kind of plastic that you're not allowed to throw in your recycling bin ... unfortunately today, most of that gets sent to the landfill or incinerated," said Ulum.
"We want to make sure the oil is clean enough to sell," said chief technology officer Kevin DeWhitt.
The Tigard facility makes about 8,000 gallons of oil a week.
This is an article that was shown on Chanel KGW out of Portland Oregon. A video is available at that website: www.kgw.com
by Keely Chalmers, KGW staff
kgw.com
Posted on April 13, 2011 at 5:25 PM
Updated today at 7:11 AM
TIGARD, Ore. -- A Tigard company is turning plastic garbage into crude oil.
The company uses a patented process that converts ground up waste plastic into synthetic crude oil.
The plastic is ground down into small pieces. Those pieces are then put in large cartridges and loaded into processing vessels.
The solid plastic is first melted into a liquid, which is heated to a vapor state then condensed back into a liquid.
It's at that point the oil is separated from all the other chemicals and contaminants in the plastics.
"An old laundry basket is the kind of thing you wouldn't be encouraged to put in your recycling bin," explained Chris Ulum, CEO of Agilyx Corporation.
But now, Ulum says, his company can turn that old plastic basket into black gold. It’s developed a technology that can take all those difficult to recycle plastics and turn them into crude oil.
"It’s the kind of plastic that you're not allowed to throw in your recycling bin ... unfortunately today, most of that gets sent to the landfill or incinerated," said Ulum.
"We want to make sure the oil is clean enough to sell," said chief technology officer Kevin DeWhitt.
The Tigard facility makes about 8,000 gallons of oil a week.
This is an article that was shown on Chanel KGW out of Portland Oregon. A video is available at that website: www.kgw.com