In recent years, plastic waste that once plagued urban environments is being transformed into fuel, achieving a remarkable shift from “white pollution” to “urban oil fields”—all made possible through pyrolysis technology.
The pyrolysis process takes place in sealed, oxygen-free or low-oxygen environments, where plastics are heated to specific temperatures, causing the high-molecular polymers to undergo chain scission and convert into low-molecular-weight hydrocarbons, achieving solid-liquid-gas separation.
Plastics, as products of the petrochemical industry, are essentially “solid petroleum.” Pyrolysis technology efficiently reclaims waste plastics by simulating nature’s petroleum formation process—converting organic matter into hydrocarbons under high temperature and pressure. This approach not only addresses plastic waste challenges but also generates substantial economic value, serving as a model for the circular economy. In the field of pyrolysis technology, leading equipment manufacturer Niutech has achieved a leap from pioneer to global leader.
Plastic wastes with saturated polymer structures (e.g., PE, PP) primarily undergo random scission or end-chain scission reactions, producing aliphatic hydrocarbons. The final pyrolysis products comprise three components: pyrolysis oil, combustible gas, and solid residues. Pyrolysis oil, as the primary economic output, can be directly used as fuel or further refined into gasoline/diesel; pyrolysis gas is purified and reused as system energy; and solid residues serve as solid fuel or adsorption materials.
Compared to simple mechanical recycling, pyrolysis technology can process mixed, low-value plastic waste; relative to incineration and landfilling, it significantly reduces environmental pollution and carbon emissions. This “atom-economical” treatment method maximizes the utilization of carbon and hydrogen elements in plastics, representing a true “waste-to-energy solution.”
The global attention on pyrolysis technology stems from its unique integrated advantages. From an environmental perspective, traditional plastic treatment methods exhibit clear shortcomings: landfilling consumes land resources and risks groundwater contamination; incineration tends to generate highly toxic substances like dioxins; and mechanical recycling imposes high raw material requirements, struggling to handle low-value plastic waste.
Pyrolysis technology operates in oxygen-free environments, fundamentally preventing dioxin formation while suppressing pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides. Studies indicate that greenhouse gas emissions from plastic pyrolysis are only one-third to one-half of those from incineration, making it a genuinely low-carbon treatment technology.
From an economic feasibility standpoint, pyrolysis technology has demonstrated commercial value through revenue streams from pyrolysis oil sales, carbon products, and government subsidies for plastic waste treatment.
Pyrolysis technology exhibits broad feedstock adaptability, capable of processing various mixed plastics without the need for precise sorting or cleaning, thereby addressing the harmless treatment and resource recovery of low-residual-value plastic waste that physical recycling cannot handle. It proves particularly invaluable for low-value mixed plastics such as sorted municipal waste plastics, aged landfill plastics, and express packaging materials.
Furthermore, pyrolysis technology achieves “upcycling” of waste plastics rather than traditional “downcycling.” Pyrolysis oil can serve as a petrochemical feedstock to produce new plastics, enabling a “plastic-to-plastic” closed loop, reducing dependence on virgin petroleum resources, and achieving a resource utilization rate exceeding 80%—far higher than the energy recovery rate post-incineration.
Niutech’s self-developed integrated low-temperature pyrolysis technology and equipment for waste rubber and plastic resource utilization enable fully continuous pyrolysis, significantly improving production efficiency and reducing energy consumption. This achievement earned the National Science and Technology Progress Award, establishing the company as an industry technology leader.
Niutech’s technical prowess has been validated not only in the domestic market but also recognized globally. Its technology and equipment have been exported to numerous countries and regions, including Germany, Brazil, Hungary, Norway, Estonia, Thailand, Iraq, Malaysia, and India.
In August 2025, Niutech signed a contract worth RMB 198 million with a UK client for a 60,000-ton/year industrial continuous waste plastic pyrolysis production line. The selection process for this project fully demonstrated international recognition of Niutech’s technical capabilities.
Niutech’s equipment has also obtained authoritative international certifications such as EU CE, German TÜV, and ATEX explosion-proof certification, particularly achieving dual ISCC EU/PLUS certifications for international sustainability and carbon standards. This signifies that pyrolysis products manufactured using Niutech’s technology meet the stringent requirements for entering the global high-end green renewable energy market. Against the backdrop of the accelerating implementation of the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), this represents a exemplary case of Chinese enterprises breaking through green trade barriers.