Facing shrinking margins in hazardous waste? Vary Tech shares 10-year pyrolysis insights: 15% energy savings, top corrosion resistance & ~100% PV/battery recovery.
With competition intensifying and profit margins shrinking in the hazardous waste treatment industry, how can hazardous waste treatment companies build sustainable competitive advantages? Miluo Vary Tech Solid Waste Treatment Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Miluo Vary Tech Solid Waste”), located in the Miluo Circular Economy Industrial Park in Hunan Province, has provided an answer through nearly 10 years of operation.
Established in 2016, Miluo Vary Tech Solid Waste is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hunan Lvsheng Environmental Protection Co., Ltd. It is licensed to provide compliant treatment of dozens of categories of industrial hazardous waste and has provided one-stop “environmental steward” services to more than 700 small and medium-sized enterprises. The project has been approved as an ecological civilization construction project supported by central budgetary investment from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).
In 2026, Miluo Vary Tech Solid Waste took the lead in introducing Vary Tech’s first bottom-heated batch pyrolysis system for a key technical retrofit, opening a new chapter in equipment upgrading, cost reduction and efficiency improvement.
A Key Technical Retrofit Creates a New Engine for Cost Reduction and Efficiency Improvement
“Reducing treatment costs and increasing unit processing capacity” are key to building core competitiveness for hazardous waste treatment companies. In response to the core requirements of increasing processing capacity and reducing energy consumption, Vary Tech developed and customized its first bottom-heated batch pyrolysis system specifically for Miluo Vary Tech Solid Waste.
Since being put into operation, the equipment has demonstrated a high level of operational stability and achieved targeted breakthroughs in several key technical areas.
In terms of processing capacity, the furnace chamber volume was specifically increased, significantly raising the amount of material that can be loaded into the furnace in each batch.
In terms of energy consumption, the innovative bottom-heating technology substantially improves heat utilization and pyrolysis efficiency.
In terms of safety, for the large-scale furnace with a diameter of 2.8 meters, the design team further strengthened the dynamic sealing system, fundamentally ensuring fully enclosed, leak-free operation during high-temperature pyrolysis.
These technological advances have translated directly into tangible cost savings. Zhou Bin, person in charge of Miluo Vary Tech Solid Waste, spoke highly of the results achieved through the batch pyrolysis equipment retrofit:
“Compared with before the retrofit, natural gas consumption across the entire equipment system has decreased by 15%, while the loading capacity has increased by 15%. We can genuinely feel the real reduction in costs whenever we hold our financial review meetings.”
Overcoming High-Corrosion Challenges and Ensuring Long-Term Stable Operation
Beyond the cost reductions achieved through the bottom-heating retrofit, Vary Tech’s oxygen-free pyrolysis equipment has demonstrated stable operation for nearly 10 years under the highly corrosive operating conditions at Miluo Vary Tech Solid Waste, setting a practical benchmark for the hazardous waste treatment industry.
Zhou Bin emphasized that the primary prerequisite for sustaining hazardous waste treatment operations over the long term is the stability and reliability of the pyrolysis equipment, which directly tests the design and manufacturing capabilities of the equipment supplier.
Speaking about Vary Tech’s pyrolysis equipment, he gave it high praise:
“Vary Tech’s furnaces are among the most advanced in the industry.”
Based on his experience with on-site inspections, Zhou Bin highlighted two core advantages of Vary Tech’s pyrolysis equipment.
First, its dynamic sealing design effectively addresses the sealing challenges commonly encountered across the industry.
Second, its high manufacturing precision and robust material selection provide strong corrosion resistance and an exceptionally long service life.
“We are highly satisfied with this equipment and the production team.”
If Vary Tech’s high-quality equipment represents the company’s hard power, the operational experience accumulated and continuously refined by the Miluo Vary Tech Solid Waste operations team represents its soft power in hazardous waste treatment.
Faced with a wide range of hazardous wastes entering the facility, with acids and alkalis coexisting and compositions being highly complex, the technical and production teams at Miluo Vary Tech Solid Waste conduct rigorous composition testing at the preliminary stage. Through appropriate material proportioning, they maintain a balanced state among the liquid, gas and solid phases during the reaction process, thereby reducing material-induced corrosion of the furnace at the source.
This deep integration of high-quality equipment and refined operational management ultimately translates into strong competitiveness in the market.
“The third key point comes from the cost savings generated by stable operation,” Zhou Bin concluded. “This cost advantage has greatly helped us develop the market, giving us the confidence to secure more feedstock and, in turn, ensuring the efficient, long-term and stable operation of the company.”
Oxygen-Free Pyrolysis vs. Conventional Incineration: Securing the Recovery of Valuable Metals
For materials containing high-value metals such as copper, nickel, lithium and silver, particularly fine metallic powders such as those generated from the dismantling of photovoltaic modules, conventional incineration can readily cause metals to oxidize at high temperatures or be carried away with fly ash, resulting in economic losses.
“Pyrolysis is particularly suitable for this type of material where valuable metal recovery is required. However, the choice of pyrolysis furnace directly determines the smoothness of the processing operation and the recovery results.”
When explaining why he firmly believes in pyrolysis technology, Zhou Bin highlighted two key advantages.
Oxygen-Free Conditions Prevent Metal Oxidation and Preserve Its Original Form
“Pyrolysis involves heating and removing organic matter under oxygen-free operating conditions. It is precisely the oxygen-free environment that ensures metal elements do not undergo oxidation reactions, allowing them to retain their original physical form and quality.”
This fundamentally addresses the oxidation challenge that is difficult to avoid with conventional incineration.
Fully Enclosed Feeding and Discharge Minimize Losses, with Recovery Rates Approaching 100%
“During continuous pyrolysis, both feeding and discharge are fully enclosed, completely avoiding the loss of fine metallic powders that can occur during conventional incineration.”
Zhou Bin emphasized that, through pyrolysis treatment, the recovery rate of valuable metals can “approach 100%.”
Expanding Application Boundaries and Targeting the Emerging Growth Potential of the “Three New Types” of Solid Waste
With the rapid growth of the new energy industry, solid wastes from decommissioned wind turbine blades, photovoltaic modules and power batteries—the so-called “three new types” of solid waste—are entering a period of explosive growth.
Faced with this vast emerging market, the application of pyrolysis technology is rapidly expanding from traditional hazardous waste treatment into these emerging high-growth sectors.
“We conducted extensive laboratory-scale testing and R&D work during the preliminary stage and found that pyrolysis technology is extremely well suited to the resource recovery of the three new types of solid waste,” Zhou Bin noted.
Because the core objective in treating these materials is the recovery of valuable metals, the key advantages of Vary Tech’s oxygen-free pyrolysis technology and equipment can be fully leveraged in this area.
Take decommissioned lithium-ion batteries as an example. Pyrolysis can efficiently remove separators, electrolytes and organic solvents, producing clean black mass and laying a solid foundation for subsequent hydrometallurgical lithium extraction.
Similarly, pyrolysis can thoroughly separate the back sheets and EVA films from photovoltaic modules. Combined with intelligent sorting, it enables the precise recovery of high-purity copper, silver and monocrystalline silicon wafers, maximizing the resource value of the materials.
“Pyrolysis equipment and processes are playing a tremendous role as we face the challenges posed by the three new types of solid waste,” Zhou Bin concluded.
From cost reduction and efficiency improvement in traditional hazardous waste treatment to value enhancement in the emerging ‘three new types’ of solid waste sector, Vary Tech’s pyrolysis technology, with its strong adaptability to diverse feedstocks, provides hazardous waste treatment companies with a powerful tool for expanding into new areas, achieving cross-sector breakthroughs and gaining a foothold in emerging circular-economy markets.
