Advanced Recycling Explained: Questions from the 2026 Sustainability Summit

What is the difference between advanced and mechanical recycling? Is pyrolysis the same as incineration? What plastics can advanced recycling process? What will it take for these technologies to reach greater scale?  

These were among the questions explored at Baker Institute Center for Energy Studies’ second annual Sustainability Summit, co-hosted with the University of Houston and the Recycling Science Council (RSC). The Summit brought together researchers, industry leaders, and sustainability professionals to examine circularity, supply chain resilience, and other sustainability challenges through a systems-level perspective. 

As part of the Summit, the co-hosts convened a live adjudication focused on public perceptions of advanced recycling. RSC Co-Chair Marco Castaldi, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor at The City College of New York, joined experts from Nexus Circular, the University of Houston’s Energy Transition Institute, the Baker Institute Center for Energy Studies, and independent energy and sustainability consulting to examine common perceptions of advanced recycling and respond to questions from attendees. 

Following the Summit, RSC and the panelists developed a comprehensive FAQ to capture the technical discussion and address additional audience questions that could not be fully explored during the event. The FAQ provides context across the technologies themselves as well as the economic, environmental policy, and infrastructure considerations that influence their potential role in a broader plastics circularity system.  

The Full FAQ is included in the new Baker Institute working paper, Public Perceptions of Advanced Recycling: Sustainability Summit 2026, by RSC Co-Chair Rachel A. Meidl, LP.D., CHMM, and Baker Institute Center for Energy Studies Nonresident Fellow Jackie deGroot. 

Explore the full FAQ and working paper here.