The Circular Economy is the new paradigm proposed by the European Union to produce a more sustainable society and business fabric, both from an environmental and economic point of view. In this new model, one of the main points is that waste is treated as resources that must be returned to the production cycle itself.

Currently, there is a need to increase the efficiency of the plastics sector in the Valencian Community to increase its competitiveness. The Circular Economy is an opportunity for this sector, as a new paradigm where waste is really resources and efficiency is the key point.

For this reason, from Aimplas, the Technological Institute of Plastics, the Circular Economy project is being carried out to investigate the development of new materials and technologies within the framework of the Circular Economy.

In the first phase of the project, the needs of the plastics sector in the Valencian Community have been established to achieve environmental and economic sustainability and define the strategies to be followed. Subsequently, the possibilities of improving the properties and quality of recycled plastic have been investigated, in the search for new applications, in complementary valorisations to mechanical recycling and in the biodegradation of plastics.

In a final phase, environmental control protocols will be developed and the results will be transferred to companies in the sector and to end users. The Circular Economy 1 project with the support of the Conselleria d’Economia Sostenible, Sectors Productius, Comerç i Treball de la Generalitat Valenciana through the Ivace, and is co-financed by the Feder de la UE funds, within the Feder de la Comunitat Operational Program Valencian 2014-2020.