What PET bottle scrap is

Polyethylene terephthalate is a polyester, not a polyolefin like polyethylene or polypropylene, and that difference explains everything about how it is recycled. PET is processed by drying and melting at temperatures where any moisture present causes hydrolysis — the molecular chain is cut by water — so the material has to be dried to a very low moisture level before it can be re-melted. The length of that chain is measured as intrinsic viscosity, or IV, and bottle-grade virgin resin typically sits between 0.76 and 0.84 dl/g.

Every recycling step costs a little IV. Washing, drying, heating and re-extruding all reduce it, so the value of PET bottle scrap is really a question of how much IV has been preserved and how clean the flake is. That is why a bale of clear, cap-free, label-free bottles is worth several times what a mixed bale of crushed coloured bottles is worth.

The PET bottle scrap grades we buy

We grade PET bottle scrap on colour, on what is still attached to the bottle, and on the baled density. Each grade goes to a different end use, so the separation happens before anything is washed.

Where our PET bottle scrap comes from

Pakistan has one of the most organised bottle collection systems in the region. Scavengers and small dealers collect bottles from streets, restaurants, offices and households; intermediate dealers bale them; and washing plants turn the bales into flake. We buy at both ends of that chain — raw bales from aggregators, and flake from washing plants whose quality we have verified over time.

We also import PET bottle bales when the domestic price spikes, typically from the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia. Imported bales tend to be more consistent in colour because they come from single-stream kerbside collection, but they carry their own contamination profile: heavier label adhesive and more PET thermoform trays mixed in with the bottles.

Specification we work to

PET is specified differently from polyolefins. IV replaces melt flow index, and moisture content is a critical rather than a secondary property. The table below shows what we measure and report.

The contaminants that ruin PET

PVC is the worst. A single PVC bottle in a tonne of PET breaks down at PET processing temperatures and releases hydrogen chloride, which attacks the polymer and the machine. It shows up as black specks and a permanent haze, and there is no filter fine enough to remove the effect. We sort PVC out by hand and by near-infrared where volumes justify it.

PETG is the second trap. It looks identical to PET but melts at a different temperature, and it appears in thermoformed packaging and some clear bottles. Because it does not crystallise the same way, it softens pellets and produces sticky, unusable flake.

Caps, rings and labels are the routine removals. Caps and tamper-evident rings are HDPE or PP and are removed by float-sink separation, because polyolefins float while PET sinks. Labels are paper or film, removed by air classification and washing, and the adhesive that held them has to be broken down with hot caustic wash or it survives into the flake as tacky spots.

Oil and chemical residue is the last one. Edible oil bottles need intensive washing, and any bottle that carried a solvent or pesticide is rejected outright, because a residue that survives washing will contaminate the melt.

How we collect and buy PET bottle scrap

We buy baled bottles from dealers and aggregators and washed flake from washing plants. Every load is sampled and checked for colour mix, cap and label content, moisture from open-air storage, and any sign of PVC or PETG. Price follows the sample, not the description.

For aggregators we can set up a standing arrangement: an agreed grade, an agreed frequency and a price band reviewed monthly. That gives the collector a predictable outlet and gives us a predictable feed into our own processing.

How we recycle PET bottle scrap

Baled bottles are opened, de-baled, and sorted by colour and polymer. Caps and rings come off mechanically; labels are removed by air classification and hot wash. The bottles are then crushed, hot-washed with caustic and detergent, rinsed, and dried. Float-sink tanks separate polyolefins from PET by density, and the flake is dried to a moisture level suitable for extrusion.

From there the flake goes either to a customer who will re-pelletise it or through our own pelletising and filtration route, where a fine screen removes residual fines. Because IV falls with every heat history, we report the IV of each lot so a fibre producer can decide whether the flake suits their draw ratio.

What is made from recycled PET bottle scrap

Recycled PET is one of the few plastics with genuinely established large-scale end markets, which is why the price of bottle scrap tracks global demand.

• Polyester staple fibre for garments, blankets and upholstery
• Filament yarn and non-woven fabric
• PET sheet for thermoformed trays and packaging
• Strapping for cartons and industrial bundling
• Bottle-to-bottle rPET, where the processor has the food-contact certification to run it
• Automotive and construction non-wovens
• 3D printing filament from clean, single-colour flake

Food-contact recycled PET requires a certified decontamination process. We supply the flake; the certification sits with the processor who runs the super-clean line, and we do not claim it on their behalf.

What moves the price of PET bottle scrap

PET bottle scrap is the most transparently priced plastic in the market, because it is traded internationally at scale and tracked daily. Its price moves with polyester fibre demand in China and India, with the price of virgin PTA and MEG, with the rupee-dollar rate, and with the shipping cost of moving bales. When fibre mills are running hard, bottle bales get expensive within a week. When they are not, the same bales sit unsold.

Within that headline price, the spread between grades is enormous. Clear, cap-free, label-free material sits at the top; mixed colour with caps and labels attached sits far below, because the yield of usable flake per tonne of bale is much lower. Colour is the first thing a buyer asks about and the first thing that changes the number, which is why sorting at the collection point pays for itself.

Specifying PET bottle scrap: what to send us

• Colour mix: clear, light blue, green, or mixed
• Whether it is baled bottle or already washed flake
• Cap, ring and label status — still fitted, or removed before baling
• Moisture situation, since bales stored outdoors hold water and lose value
• Approximate monthly tonnage and whether you can hold a consistent grade
• Any PVC, PETG or oil-bottle contamination present — declaring it changes the price honestly rather than after the fact

Buying PET bottle scrap from Al Qaryan Industries

Al Qaryan Industries buys PET bottle scrap in bales and washed PET flake, and trades both within Pakistan and for export. We have been in the plastic trade since 2007 and move around 500 tons a month across all polymers, which gives collectors and washing plants a reliable outlet.

Selling to us: tell us the colour mix, whether it is baled bottle or flake, the tonnage per month and the moisture situation. Send a photograph of the bale and a sample if you can. WhatsApp +92 333 201 0506 reaches us directly and we will respond with a grade and a rate.

Buying from us: specify the colour, the IV range you need, whether you can take flake or require pellets, and your monthly tonnage. We will confirm what is available from current stock and arrange a trial load before a long-term commitment.

Questions buyers and suppliers ask

Related materials