C-PCC Application · OYSTER SHELL → OCC
OCC · Oyster Calcium Carbonate
Biogenic calcium carbonate made by calcining oyster shells at low temperature and treating them physically and chemically — designed to use less energy and emit less carbon than conventional calcination at 1,200°C or higher.
Process
How oyster shells become industrial materials
Specification Target specifications
Product grades by application
The specifications below are company product targets; accredited tests on oyster shells will be obtained in the pilot.
| Item | Purity | Particle size | Whiteness | Moisture |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plastic filler grade | ≥ 95% | 50 ~ 75 ㎛ | ≥ 90 | ≤ 0.5% |
| Eco-friendly construction materials | ≥ 95% | 2 ~ 5 ㎛ | < 90 | ≤ 1% |
Conventional ground calcium carbonate
Made from imports and mining — environmental damage
Oyster-shell bio calcium carbonate
A bio-material that solves the oyster-shell disposal problem while aiming for lower carbon. We enter the market from segments with lower spec hurdles, such as construction materials with whiteness below 90.
Why Tongyeong
The feedstock isn't something we buy —
it's something that needs treatment
- Tongyeong generates 150,000–200,000 t of oyster shells a year
- Tongyeong's fishery by-product recycling facility handles about 80,000 t/yr (300 t/day)
- About 50,000 t/yr dumped at sea · disposal cost borne by oyster farmers KRW 30,000–60,000 per tonne (Yeosu MBC, Feb 2024)
- Washed shells go to steelmaking, dried shells to flue-gas desulfurization, and heat-treated shells to calcium supplements and paint substitutes
CARBON-U does not aim to replace existing recycling facilities. Our goal is to add new high-value uses and markets for Tongyeong oyster shells, building a regional circular ecosystem where existing infrastructure and new technology work together.
Markets OCC targets
| Korean calcium carbonate market | approx. 3.05 million t (2022) |
| Calcium carbonate for plastic fillers | approx. KRW 40 billion · 280,000 t/yr About 20% of all calcium carbonate |
| Main demand | Plastic compounds · building materials · paper |
| Priority targets (company analysis) | Applications where color matters less: pigmented plastics · PVC pipes · cable compounds · asphalt fillers, etc. |
Source: CARBON-U IR materials (Oct 2026), market analysis
Tongyeong Pilot
500 t/yr pilot — turning key assumptions into measured values
CARBON-U's process has been demonstrated on industrial by-products. Yield, quality and cost on oyster shells have not yet been measured — that is the purpose of this pilot.
Accredited tests for purity · whiteness · particle size · heavy metals
Product yield · shell consumption per tonne
Variable production cost per tonne
Quantified once the LCA methodology is fixed
Sample tests · quotations · purchase intent
Oyster-shell-specific items to validate in the pilot
Impurities specific to oyster shells, absent in industrial by-products
Actual recovery rate of the low-temperature calcination process
Repeatable purity · whiteness · particle size · moisture
Measured energy and raw-material unit consumption
After the pilot: customer validation data → TIPS/R&D → decision on 20,000 t/yr commercial plant (upon passing the gate) → follow-on investment
OCC samples · joint evaluation
We are looking for partners to test samples in plastic compounds and building materials.