Closed-loop Mooring Lines

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Every year, large quantities of mooring lines are replaced in the maritime sector, but without an effective recycling solution, these lines often end up as waste in harbors, landfills, or incineration facilities.

This project aims to develop a circular solution where retired ropes are not simply discarded but instead recycled and transformed into new lines.

Latest developments

OPF signs collaboration agreement with startup company acckon ApS

Feb 20, 2024

A new collaboration agreement has been reached between OPF and acckon ApS in the project "Closed-loop recycling of mooring lines". It is estimated that globally 75,000...

Problem

It is estimated that approximately 750,000 tons of hawsers are produced globally each year, a significant portion of which is made from polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) – materials that, in principle, have high recycling potential. In practice, however, recycling is challenging due to the complex structure of the ropes, which makes them difficult to separate. Without technology capable of handling the splitting and cleaning of the tightly interwoven fibers, most discarded ropes are currently treated as waste.

For safety reasons, mooring lines and ropes are subject to strict regulations, requiring regular replacement to ensure the safety and functionality of vessels. As a result, they accumulate in harbors, are landfilled, or incinerated, contributing to plastic pollution and the loss of valuable resources.

This challenge is not only an environmental issue but also an industrial one. At present, no widely implemented solutions exist to establish a truly closed-loop model for hawsers. Without a structured take-back system or technology capable of separating and recycling these materials in a scalable process, the industry continues to rely heavily on virgin plastic for new ropes.

Perspectives

The project has the potential to create a more sustainable model for the recycling of maritime plastic materials that can be widely implemented across the industry. By developing an efficient separation and recycling method, we can ensure that discarded hawsers are given a second life instead of becoming waste.

This circular solution will help reduce plastic pollution in the marine environment, decrease the demand for new fossil-based plastic, and establish an economically viable model for recycling within the maritime sector. With a growing global demand for recycled plastic, this technology could become an important component of the green transition and pave the way for similar solutions for other types of maritime plastic waste.

Project description

To address this challenge, Ocean Plastic Forum is collaborating with the start-up company Accon, who are developing a technology for mechanical recycling of hawsers. The goal is to establish a closed-loop model where discarded ropes are not simply disposed of but are instead collected, separated, and processed into new raw materials that can be used to produce new ropes.

The development of a specialized method is crucial to ensuring that the materials can be recycled in a way that is both economically viable and preserves the quality of the plastic. By combining this new technology with existing mechanical recycling processes, it may become possible to transform large volumes of discarded ropes into new plastic pellets, which can be used to manufacture new hawsers.

Ocean Plastic Forum provides advisory support and insights into establishing a value chain with the shipping industry in the long term.