Circular and resilient material flows for nonwoven healthcare products

The increasing use of fossil‑based non‑woven products in healthcare entails significant climate and resilience challenges, with an annual consumption increase of 7–8%. The ReNoWo feasibility study identified major barriers to recycling – such as complex material mixtures and lack of infrastructure – while also showing clear climate benefits when switching to recycled or bio‑based materials. A system‑level approach combining mechanical and thermochemical recycling, improved collection, and new business models can reduce emissions and strengthen supply resilience for more than 2,000 tonnes of annual non‑woven waste.

The project aims to examine how collection of both non‑woven and single‑use plastic products can be organised within the regions and evaluate the potential of different recycling technologies, such as mechanical and thermochemical methods, specifically pyrolysis and steam cracking. The project will study how sorting of hospital waste can be designed centrally and what efficiency can be achieved. Trials to produce new non‑woven material from the collected waste will also be carried out. In addition, previous life‑cycle assessments (LCA) will be updated with new data and compare the climate impact of the various recycling technologies with today’s incineration‑based system.

The project involves actors across the entire value chain – from material producers to users and recyclers – which is essential for testing circular solutions.