POM (polyoxymethylene / acetal)

POM — acetal — is the precision engineer's polymer: high stiffness, superb dimensional stability, a naturally slippery surface. Gears, bearings, zips, aerosol valves, automotive clips. It machines and moulds beautifully, which is why machining workshops generate clean, high-value offcut streams.

Recycling POM is a specialist's business: overheated POM releases formaldehyde, so reprocessors control temperature strictly and want single-source, uncontaminated input — sprues, machining offcuts, start-up purge with declared grade. Copolymer and homopolymer POM behave differently and should be declared. Key parameters: source, colour (natural earns the premium), and freedom from other polymers. Scrap classifies under HS 3915.90, primary forms 3907.10. As with most engineering streams in this corridor, POM trades enquiry-led, on sample and declared origin rather than a standard grade sheet.