30% substitution rate! KPX Korea builds Asia’s first PU foam recycling plant—Who’s leading the polyurethane circular economy race?

Even after pre-treatment steps such as shredding and filtration, trace impurities cannot be fully removed; these residual contaminants slightly disrupt the hydroxyl value, viscosity, and color of regenerated polyols. If the proportion of recycled material is too high, foam stability during new foaming deteriorates, and comfort- and mechanical-performance indicators—such as resilience and support—become inconsistent. To counteract these negative effects from impurities, manufacturers must blend in virgin polyols and adjust catalyst formulations—raising both recycling processing and re-foaming costs. This is precisely where KPX Chemical’s adoption of H&S technology delivers value. H&S’s recycling process has already achieved commercial validation in Europe and Latin America, with its technical maturity proven in real-world operations. According to KPX, the regenerated polyols produced via this process can substitute up to 30% of virgin polyols in flexible foam production—and even higher substitution rates are achievable in certain applications—while maintaining the original mechanical performance and ride comfort of the final foam products. A 30% substitution rate means that a flexible foam production line with an annual capacity of 10,000 tons can reduce virgin polyol consumption by approximately 3,000 tons per year—equivalent to cutting thousands of tons of fossil-derived carbon emissions. Industry giants sprint ahead: Wanhua, Dow, and KPX vie for leadership in the circular economy KPX is not the first company to enter the polyurethane recycling arena. In fact, global chemical giants have already entered this field from different angles, forming three major forces. The first force comprises Western and European companies. Dow Chemical has previously made progress in chemical recycling of end-of-life automotive polyurethane foam: its process depolymerizes used car seat foam into regenerated polyols, which are then reused in manufacturing new car seats. Dow has also partnered with mattress retailers to establish a closed-loop supply chain—from old mattresses → recycling → new mattresses. BASF and Covestro are likewise investing continuously in their respective chemical recycling pathways. BASF’s polyurethane closed-loop recycling technology “Loop” has achieved commercial breakthrough. Using its “Advanced Liquification” process, BASF converts PU waste into feedstock ready for re-entry into production—with a 100% recovery rate and regenerated material properties matching those of virgin material. This technology has been successfully applied in soft foam applications such as automotive seating and footwear. Evonik developed an in-house hydrolysis process to recycle PU soft foam from mattresses, car seats, and furniture. Laboratory-scale technology development was completed in 2021, yielding polyols and diamines fully substitutable for virgin feedstocks. Evonik collaborated with Vita Group on product trials. In 2022, it launched a continuous pilot plant in Hanau, Germany; in 2023, it partnered with Remondis to secure a steady supply of end-of-life mattresses. In 2026, the project received government funding, and the company plans to build a dedicated recycling technology center in Hanau to optimize waste pre-treatment and product purification processes—and to co-locate an electrochemical center for catalytic separation R&D. The full process enables closed-loop recycling of soft foam; at scale, it reduces fossil feedstock use and carbon emissions, accelerating industrial deployment of recycling technologies. Covestro, together with partners, previously developed a PU foam recycling solution based on discarded mattresses, aiming to reuse regenerated polyols in soft foam production. The second force comprises Chinese enterprises. Wanhua Chemical’s pilot-scale glycolysis facility for PU soft foam—designed specifically to process end-of-life automotive seat foam and household mattresses—entered full operation after 2023. All internally produced regenerated polyols are consumed in-house, feeding Wanhua’s own soft foam production lines to achieve full material loop closure.

Evonik repositions itself in chemical recycling!

This project targets polyurethane (PU) foam waste generated from end-of-life mattresses, automotive seats, and furniture. Evonik estimates that Germany alone generates several thousand tons of such PU foam waste annually. Through Evonik’s newly developed hydrolysis process, PU foam is broken down into its fundamental chemical building blocks—yielding regenerated materials that can be fully recovered and used to manufacture high-quality products. This technology has advanced from laboratory validation to continuous-operation pilot-scale testing. Evonik is currently operating related pilot equipment at its Hanau site, with the next step being industrial-scale scaling. Additionally, Evonik plans to construct a dedicated technology center at its Hanau facility focused specifically on chemical recycling of plastics. This center will further investigate pre-treatment processes—including shredding, pelletizing, and grinding—as well as purification techniques for reaction mixtures—such as filtration and centrifugal separation—and explore how to broaden the range of waste feedstocks accepted. Evonik’s progress in chemical recycling of PU foam I. Chemical recycling Hydrolysis-based recycling of PU foam Evonik previously developed a hydrolysis process for recovering base components from flexible PU foam. The company states that components derived via this route can be reused to produce high-quality products. The recent Hanau project—backed by the state of Hesse—and the planned technology center represent a significant advancement along this technological pathway. Collaboration with REMONDIS to recycle end-of-life mattress foam In 2023, Evonik announced a partnership with REMONDIS to advance circular recycling of PU foam. The collaboration leverages REMONDIS’s expertise in waste logistics management to ensure a reliable supply of end-of-life mattress foam and other feedstocks for Evonik’s PU recycling process. Collaboration with Oerlikon Barmag on PET chemical recycling In 2025, Evonik and Oerlikon Barmag announced a strategic partnership targeting PET chemical recycling. Their joint efforts focus on PET waste depolymerization, monomer purification, and repolymerization—with the goal of returning PET waste to high-value material applications. Upgrading pyrolysis oil from waste plastics

Evonik partners with firms in Japan to develop recycling model for polyurethane foam

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Evonik Industries partners with Japanese firms to develop a chemical recycling model for polyurethane foam. The project converts discarded foam into high-purity recycled polyols and amines for new product manufacturing.

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