RESOURCES · CASE STUDIES · CIRCULARITY · COMPLIANCE · COST
Turning a Hazardous Caustic By-Product Into a Reusable Raw Material
A process change plus WTS’s reuse network turned a RCRA hazardous caustic by-product into 239,145 lbs of reusable raw material, eliminating the waste at the source.
Client: Specialty chemical manufacturer
Focus: Circularity · Compliance · Cost
CHALLENGE
A caustic by-product from production had to be managed as a hazardous waste stream, carrying the cost and liability of destruction and disposal.
APPROACH
WTS examined the process itself. Removing soluble contamination through chemical oxidation turned the by-product into a caustic co-product (~40% caustic, 60% water) recoverable as a raw material. WTS then connected the producer with a network end-user who could substitute it for virgin material, confirming quality and off-loading procedures on both sides.
RESULT
239,145 lbs of recovered caustic directly reused in 2020 across six bulk loads; a RCRA hazardous waste eliminated at the source, with reduced virgin-caustic purchasing and lower embedded emissions for the end-user.
WHY IT MATTERS
The strongest sustainability outcomes come from rethinking inputs and outputs, and having a network on both sides of the transaction to put recovered material to use.
CASE STUDIES
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