Sumitomo Riko Group launches global circular economy initiative

Sumitomo Riko and LanzaTech enter into a joint-development agreement to reuse rubber, resin, and urethane waste, contributing to the creation of a circular economy.

Sumitomo Riko Company Limited and US carbon capture and transformation company, LanzaTech NZ, Inc. have entered into a joint-development agreement to transition to a circular economy for rubber, resin, and urethane waste. This initiative will enable both parties to establish new technology and accelerate the creation of a sustainable society comprised of carbon neutrality and a circular economy.

In addition to the 3Rs (reduce, reuse, and recycle), the circular economy has been designed to suppress the input and consumption of new resources as much as possible and aims to optimize the worth of resources and products and minimalize resource consumption and the generation of waste material.

In conjunction with LanzaTech, the Sumitomo Riko Group will start the research and development of new technology to reuse this rubber, resin, and urethane waste to create a circular economy for these materials. After turning rubber, resin, and urethane waste into gas, it is then transformed, utilizing LanzaTech’s “microbe biosynthetic technology”. The application of this carbon transformation technology is aimed to produce a new isoprene chemical substance through the cultivation of microbes while simultaneously producing ethanol. Ultimately, in cooperation with raw materials manufacturers, Sumitomo Riko will consider applying the recycling technology to reuse isoprene and ethanol as rubber and resin.

The Sumitomo Riko Group aims to be “a corporation that contributes to safety, comfort, and the environment for people, society, and the earth” in global business. The joint development with LanzaTech aims to create a world where polymeric components will be regenerated into new products through the development of a new circular economy.

LanzaTech has created a platform that converts waste carbon into new everyday products that would otherwise come from virgin fossil resources. With 3 commercial plants operating and additional plants under construction globally, LanzaTech is based in Illinois, USA with offices in China, India, the UK, and across Europe. They are a finalist in the Fix Our Climate category of the 2022 Earthshot Prize.