Tech watch: Latest innovations target complex waste streams

From the newsletter

Since March, several circular economy innovations have emerged targeting waste streams that conventional recycling systems often struggle to manage. Circular Rising features four of them, ranging from refill systems designed to replace single-use sachets to AI-powered waste sorting technologies and systems converting difficult plastics into fuel and industrial feedstocks. 

• Two of the featured technologies were developed in Europe, one in Africa and another in Asia, reflecting the increasingly global nature of circular economy innovation.

• Although developed in different regions, all four technologies could have relevance for Africa where waste collection gaps, plastic pollution and infrastructure constraints remain significant. 

More details

• In March, South African companies Smartfill and DY unveiled an open-sourced refill and reuse system designed for liquid fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) products such as detergents and household cleaners. The system includes low-cost dispenser hardware, shared bills of materials, firmware guidelines and deployment standards aimed at helping retailers adopt refill models at lower cost. The technology was specifically designed for global south markets where single-use sachets remain widespread due to affordability and informal retail structures. By making the core dispenser architecture openly available, the developers aim to lower barriers to refill adoption and encourage wider industry uptake. By enabling consumers to refill products instead of repeatedly purchasing sachets, the system could help reduce plastic waste generation while supporting more circular packaging systems in small shops and modern trade outlets. 

• Meanwhile, UK-based PowerHouse Energy has gained attention for its Distributed Modular Generation (DMG) System, a modular waste-to-energy technology capable of converting non-recyclable plastics and hard-to-abate waste into syngas or high-purity hydrogen. The proprietary system is designed to operate with ultra-low carbon dioxide emissions while recovering value from waste streams that conventional recycling systems often struggle to process. The technology aligns with a growing interest in waste-to-resource systems that combine waste management with low-carbon energy production. For regions such as Africa facing mounting plastic pollution and landfill pressures, such technologies could offer an alternative pathway for managing residual waste while simultaneously producing industrial fuels and energy feedstocks.

• At the US’s Stony Brook University, researchers have developed an AI-assisted municipal waste characterization system using low-cost cameras and machine learning algorithms to identify and classify mixed waste materials including plastics, paper, fabrics and food waste. The technology aims to address one of the biggest barriers to effective recycling systems globally: contamination and poor waste segregation, which often make recyclable materials difficult or uneconomical to recover. The system could help recycling facilities improve sorting efficiency, increase recovery rates and lower operational costs associated with manual waste characterization. 

• In Asia, Indian startup PolyCycl recently scaled a patented chemical recycling process that converts difficult plastic waste streams such as food-contaminated plastics, multilayer packaging films and low-value mixed plastics into hydrocarbon oils. The technology uses catalytic thermal conversion to transform plastics often rejected by conventional recycling systems into feedstocks for new plastics and industrial fuels. The system targets one of the largest gaps in global recycling systems: plastics that are technically or economically difficult to recycle mechanically. For countries grappling with growing volumes of multilayer packaging and sachet waste like those in Africa, the technology could help reduce landfill disposal and open burning while supporting more circular plastics management systems.

Our take

• The technologies suggest that circular economy innovation is increasingly shifting away from conventional recycling toward solutions targeting waste streams that are difficult, contaminated or economically unattractive to recover. This reflects growing recognition that some of the world’s fastest-growing waste streams cannot be addressed through traditional recycling systems alone. 

• Although most of the technologies were developed outside Africa, several were designed with global south realities in mind, including informal retail structures, mixed waste streams and infrastructure limitations. This signals growing international recognition that circular economy solutions will need to adapt to developing market conditions rather than simply replicate models designed for advanced economies.