Electric vehicle manufacturing still produces substantial carbon emissions. (Photo: iStock)
The carbon reduction effect of electric vehicles is mainly concentrated during driving, while the manufacturing of the vehicle body and batteries still generates significant carbon emissions. Furthermore, solvents, which are indispensable in production lines, emit at least three times more carbon if incinerated directly after use compared to when they are recycled.
A solvent recycling plant in Thailand is optimistic about the future, forecasting a 10% revenue growth this year, with plans to eventually trade carbon credits in the market.
Solvent recycling reduces carbon emissions by over threefold
Solvents are crucial in the manufacturing of electric vehicles due to their ability to dissolve dirt and evaporate quickly. They are commonly used to clean automotive and electronic components and to blend resins and pigments for vehicle coatings. For electric vehicle batteries, solvents are also a key component of lithium-ion battery operations.
Siamnat Panassorn, CEO of Thailand's Sun-up Recycling, noted that the challenge in the industry is how to bring back solvents from used batteries and reuse them to produce new batteries.
Sun-up Recycling, founded in Japan in 1995 and established in Thailand in 2017, specializes in organic solvent recycling. Using its unique distillation technology, it separates and purifies the mixtures in waste solvents, producing recycled solvents with 99% purity and a recovery rate of 80% to 95%. The company recycles approximately 8,000 to 9,000 tons of solvents annually.
Recycling solvents significantly reduces carbon emissions. According to data from Thailand's Bangkok Post, recycled solvents emit around 0.66 tons of carbon per ton, whereas incinerating used solvents results in 2.92 tons of carbon emissions per ton. This means that using recycled solvents can reduce carbon emissions by approximately 77%.
Thailand's Sun-up Recycling utilizes advanced distillation technology to efficiently separate and purify mixed substances from waste solvents, ultimately producing 99% pure recycled solvents. (Image: Sun-up Recycling)
Policy support, cost savings drive outlook for solvent recycling
In addition to its environmental benefits, Panassorn pointed out that regenerated solvents with 99% purity are almost identical in function to new solvents, but at a much lower cost. "We help our customers save 30% to 40% in costs because they no longer need to buy new solvents."
In 2021, the Thai government launched the BCG (Bio, Circular, Green) economy policy to encourage manufacturing industries to adopt new technologies that add value to products without harming the environment. Solvent recycling is a key component of this initiative.
Sun-up Recycling is also working with Thailand’s Greenhouse Gas Management Organization (TGO) to join the country's voluntary emissions reduction program (T-VER), aiming to gain certification and convert its carbon reduction efforts into carbon credits, which can be sold to companies who are trying to offset carbon emissions.
Panassorn believes that the pressure for businesses to reduce carbon emissions continues to grow, particularly in the highly competitive automotive and electronics sectors, where companies are more sensitive to carbon reduction costs. He predicts a 10% revenue growth this year and sees opportunities to expand into international markets, particularly in key Southeast Asian production hubs like Vietnam and the Philippines.
Source: Bangkok Post, Sun-up
