EuCIA member FIPF (Finnish Plastics Industries Federation) has released an animated video showing how composites waste can be given a second life through cement co-processing.
KiMuRa is a Finnish system turning composites waste into raw material for cement. Waste is collected, shredded, and then sent to a cement plant. The glass fibre in the composite becomes part of the mineral raw material that turns into clinker. The resin burns as fuel, providing energy for the kiln. Finnish recycling company Kuusakoski Recycling collects and shreds composites waste centrally, then delivers it to cement producer Finnsementti’s plant, where it’s fed straight into the kiln. According to the companies, the process leaves behind no residual ash or chemical waste.
The goal of the video is to show, step by step, what actually happens to the waste in cement co-processing.
“Composites waste is often talked about as an unsolvable problem, even though Finland already has a working route for putting it to use,” says Dr Pirjo Pietikäinen, a specialist at FIPF.
“Composites are made into long-lasting, durable products,” she continues. “The KiMuRa route shows that even demanding composites waste can have a functioning collection, treatment, and recovery chain built around it.”
CompositeCircle project
The knowledge built through KiMuRa is now feeding into CompositeCircle, an EU Interreg Baltic Sea Region project bringing together experts from six countries to develop composites recycling routes and business ecosystems across the region.
The aim is to make sure composite products approaching the end of their working life get properly repaired, reused in new applications, or turned into raw material for industry.
“The CompositeCircle project gives us the chance to share the expertise built in Finland more broadly across the Baltic Sea region,” says Egidija Rainosalo, R&D coordinator at Centria University of Applied Sciences. “KiMuRa is a good example of how the circular economy needs technology, logistics, and cooperation across the whole value chain.”
Watch the video on the FIPF website or YouTube.
Recycling pathways for composites
EuCIA, in collaboration with partner industry associations, calls for technology neutrality in recycling pathways.
Given the wide variation in both the quantities and qualities of composites waste, no single recycling system can address all streams. Meeting Europe’s environmental objectives will therefore require a mix of complementary solutions, and policy should embrace this diversity rather than privileging one route over another.
Cement co-processing already provides a large-scale, technically proven option to recycle composites waste by substituting both raw materials and fossil fuels in cement production. At the same time, chemical and thermal recycling technologies can return complex waste streams back into valuable feedstocks.
Recognising these pathways under EU law would send a strong signal of technology neutrality, accelerate investment, and enable Europe to scale up the full range of recycling solutions needed to meet its circularity targets.
Read the position paper Circular Economy Act and Composites on our Knowledge Hub.
