AIMPLAS to transform end-of-life fishing nets into recycled nylon
Last update on Jan 20, 2026
The abandonment of fishing nets in seas and oceans is one of the most persistent environmental problems. To respond to this situation, the REDES4VALUE project is working on the recovery of end-of-life fishing nets, transforming them into new sustainable products with high added value such as recycled nylon, films for agricultural packaging and covers, automotive parts, as well as large-format parts produced by additive manufacturing. All this from innovative processes of mechanical and chemical recycling and reactive extrusion.
Aim to close the life cycle of PA and reduce marine pollution
This initiative, financed by the Valencian Institute of Competitiveness and Innovation (IVACE+i) and ERDF funds, brings together a consortium made up of AIMPLAS, UBE, ZIKNES and the University of Valencia. The common goal: to close the life cycle of polyamides and reduce marine pollution through innovative solutions applicable to industry.
Although many nets are made from polyethylene or polypropylene, the project focuses on polyamide netting, a material with great potential for chemical recycling. Its structure allows the recovery of monomers such as caprolactam and the obtaining of new polyamides with properties practically identical to virgin ones.
"We are achieving optimized conditions to depolymerize the networks and recover monomers with purities greater than 95% in some streams under study at the laboratory level and greater than 80% in pilot scales. This will allow usto repolymerise and obtain new polyamides with quality equivalent to virgin polyamides", explains Nairim Torrealba, researcher in Chemical Recycling at AIMPLAS.
Recycled polyamides are designed for sectors such as packaging, agriculture, automotive or 3D printing. Companies such as UBE are already analyzing its commercialization and ZIKNES adapts its equipment to validate large-format parts. Early applications could include packaging, agricultural covers, automotive components, and large 3D demonstrators.
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"They are materials with immediate application in industry and with a clear advantage in sustainability compared to conventional polyamides. These solutions not only reduce dependence on virgin raw materials, but also open up new opportunities for the industry in terms of sustainability and circular economy," said Torrealba.
Disruptive technology and international collaboration
REDES4VALUE advances in processes such as hydrothermal depolymerization, ionic liquid-assisted solvolysis or reactive extrusion, in addition to complete life cycle and feasibility assessments. One of the main challenges of the project is the treatment of highly degraded networks with a high presence of impurities, but the results are very promising.
The collaboration with the Sea2See brand has made it possible to have recovered networks available in Ghana since 2019 and has been key to structuring the circular value chain from the origin of the waste. "Without this contribution of material, it would not be possible to move forward. The networks that come from Ghana are essential to validate the processes and obtain real results," said Torrealba.
The project has AIMPLAS as responsible for the chemical recycling tasks, UBE in the scaling and repolymerization part, ZIKNES in the validation in 3D printing and the MATS group of the University of Valencia (MATS-UV) in the solvolalysis and kinetics studies. "Our goal is to consolidate a chemical recycling line that can be applied to complex waste and demonstrate that it is a real and necessary solution," Torrealba concluded.
It should also be noted that this initiative is funded by the Valencian Institute of Competitiveness and Innovation (IVACE+i), through the Strategic Projects in Cooperation program in its 2024 call, and ERDF funds.