SK Innovation said Sunday it has successfully extracted solvent and lube base oil from plastic waste to boost environmental, social and corporate governance under SK Group’s Green Balance initiative.

According to South Korea’s refining-to-battery firm, researchers of SK Innovation Institute of Technology Innovation heated pieces of plastic waste and obtained high-purity pyrolysis oil by removing impurities in it significantly. With the pyrolysis oil, the researches manufactured solvent and lube base oil products.

“The solvent made with plastic wastes demonstrated a high ratio of paraffin and a low odor compared to existing solvent products. Also, the lube base oil showed enough quality to make premium Group III Plus base oils categorized by American Petroleum Institute,” a SK Innovation official said.

Solvents are used for detergent, paint thinner and chemical synthesis. Lube base oil is a key raw material of lubricants and decides the quality of lubricants.

“SK Innovation, which faces environmental issues such as plastic waste, needs to transform its chemical business into a new one completely and must seek intrinsic changes to become a company that stands out in terms of ESG,” President and CEO of SK Global Chemical Na Kyung-soo said. SKGC, which is leading the project, is a chemical subsidiary of SK Group.

By Kim Byung-wook (kbw@heraldcorp.com)