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You can download the paper by clicking the button above. Pre-consumer plastic waste such as industrial packaging is currently recycled to a greater extent than post-consumer packaging, as it is relatively pure and available from a smaller number of sources of relatively higher volume. Automated pre-sorting is usually sufficient to result in a plastics stream separate from glass, metals and paper (other than when attached, e.g. Bring-schemes tend to result in low collection rates in the absence of either highly committed public behaviour or deposit-refund schemes that impose a direct economic incentive to participate. Here, we briefly set recycling into context against other waste-reduction strategies, namely reduction in material use through downgauging or product reuse, the use of alternative biodegradable materials and energy recovery as fuel.

In addition, because of the durability of the polymers involved, substantial quantities of discarded end-of-life plastics are accumulating as debris in landfills and in natural habitats worldwide. In Japan, for example, the excavation that is necessary for landfill is expensive because of the hard nature of the underlying volcanic bedrock; while in the Netherlands it is costly because of permeability from the sea. 12 0 obj

Thermosetting polymers such as unsaturated polyester or epoxy resin cannot be mechanically recycled, except to be potentially re-used as filler materials once they have been size-reduced or pulverized to fine particles or powders (Rebeiz & Craft 1995). Automatic sorting of containers is now widely used by material recovery facility operators and also by many plastic recycling facilities. In this paper, we will review the current systems and technology for plastics recycling, life-cycle evidence for the eco-efficiency of plastics recycling, and briefly consider related economic and public interest issues. Historically, this has required very significant subsidies because of the low price of petrochemicals in contrast to the high process and plant costs to chemically recycle polymers. A major portion of plastic produced each year is used to make disposable items of packaging or other short-lived products that are discarded within a year of manufacture. Chemical or feedstock recycling has the advantage of recovering the petrochemical constituents of the polymer, which can then be used to re-manufacture plastic or to make other synthetic chemicals. This has encouraged local authorities to organize collection of recyclables, encouraged some manufacturers to develop products with recycled content, and other businesses to supply this public demand. Approaches to increasing the recycling of films and flexible packaging could include separate collection, or investment in extra sorting and processing facilities at recovery facilities for handling mixed plastic wastes. 8 0 obj Reducing the amount of packaging used per item will reduce waste volumes. The proportion of bottles in litter was reduced as well compared to other states (West 2007). Plastic materials can be recycled in a variety of ways and the ease of recycling varies among polymer type, package design and product type. %PDF-1.5 The losses of rejected material and the value of the recycled resins would be enhanced. endobj Historically, the primary methods of waste disposal have been by landfill or incineration. Recycling of cross-linked rubber from car tyres back to rubber crumb for re-manufacture into other products does occur and this is expected to grow owing to the EU Directive on Landfill of Waste (1999/31/EC), which bans the landfill of tyres and tyre waste. For example, PVC and halogenated additives are typically present in mixed plastic waste leading to the risk of dioxins, other polychlorinated biphenyls and furans being released into the environment (Gilpin et al. Advances in technologies and systems for the collection, sorting and reprocessing of recyclable plastics are creating new opportunities for recycling, and with the combined actions of the public, industry and governments it may be possible to divert the majority of plastic waste from landfills to recycling over the next decades. High disposal costs are an economic incentive towards either recycling or energy recovery. Generally, clear PET and unpigmented HDPE milk bottles are positively identified and separated out of the stream. 2009a). Extended producer responsibility can also be enacted through deposit-refund schemes, covering for example, beverage containers, batteries and vehicle tyres. a CO2-e is GWP calculated as 100-yr equivalent to CO2 emissions. In terms of energy use, recycling has been shown to save more energy than that produced by energy recovery even when including the energy used to collect, transport and re-process the plastic (Morris 1996). Recycling can therefore decrease energy and material usage per unit of output and so yield improved eco-efficiency (WBCSD 2000). While plastics have been recycled since the 1970s, the quantities that are recycled vary geographically, according to plastic type and application. Feedstock (chemical) recycling technologies satisfy the general principle of material recovery, but are more costly than mechanical recycling, and less energetically favourable as the polymer has to be depolymerized and then re-polymerized. as labels and closures). 2009; Teuten et al. endobj This technology has been proven for rPET from clear bottles (WRAP 2008b), and more recently rHDPE from milk bottles (WRAP 2006). 2004). For this reason, it is important to develop effective on-the-go and office recycling collection schemes if overall collection rates for plastic packaging are to increase. There are, however, developments in this area and new technologies such as ballistic separators, sophisticated hydrocyclones and air-classifiers that will increase the ability to recover post-consumer flexible packaging (Fisher 2003). Life-cycle analyses has also been used for plastic-recycling systems to evaluate the net environmental impacts (Arena et al. This is because thermoset plastics are permanently cross-linked in manufacture, and therefore cannot be re-melted and re-formed. Even within the EU there are a wide range of waste-management prioritizations for the total municipal solid waste stream (MSW), from those heavily weighted towards landfill, to those weighted towards incineration (figure1)recycling performance also varies considerably. There is increasing public awareness on the need for sustainable production and consumption. Another area of innovation has been in finding higher value applications for recycled polymers in closed-loop processes, which can directly replace virgin polymer (see table3). A major challenge for producing recycled resins from plastic wastes is that most different plastic types are not compatible with each other because of inherent immiscibility at the molecular level, and differences in processing requirements at a macro-scale. In addition, the wide range of containers and packs for branding and marketing purposes makes direct take-back and refilling less feasible. will also be available for a limited time. This indicates a historical growth rate of about 9 per cent p.a. Comparing some environmental impacts of commodity polymer production and current ability for recycling from post-consumer sources. As a consequence primarily of this perceived pollution risk, incineration of plastic is less prevalent than landfill and mechanical recycling as a waste-management strategy. endobj Bethesda, MD 20894, Web Policies National Library of Medicine Most post-consumer flexible packaging not recovered, not widely recycled yet from post-consumer, but has potential. See, Barnes D. K. A., Galgani F., Thompson R. C., Barlaz M.2009, Accumulation and fragmentation of plastic debris in global environments, Department of Environment and Conservation (NSW) 2005, Department of Environment and Heritage (Australia) 2008, Department of Environment Heritage and Local Government (Ireland) 2007, Drelich J., Payne J., Kim T., Miller J.1998, Selective froth floatation of PVC from PVC/PET mixtures for the plastics recycling industry, Better management of municipal waste will reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Mixed plastics, the least favourable source of recycled polymer could still provide a net benefit of the vicinity of 0.5 tonnes of CO2-e per tonne of recycled product (WRAP 2008c). Thermoplastics, including PET, PE and PP all have high potential to be mechanically recycled. <>/Border[0 0 0]/P 3 0 R>> 2005). For such customers, confirmation of recycled content and suitability for recycling of the packaging can be a positive attribute, while exaggerated claims for recyclability (where the recyclability is potential, rather than actual) can reduce consumer confidence. A., Moloney C. L.2009, Monitoring the abundance of plastic debris in the marine environment, Structuring policy problems for plastics, the environment and human health: reflections from the UK, PET waste management by chemical recycling: a review, Song J. H., Murphy R. J., Narayan R., Davies G. B. H.2009, Biodegradable and compostable alternatives to conventional plastics, Degradable polymers and plastics in landfill sites, Transport and release of chemicals from plastics to the environment and to wildlife, Thompson R. C., Swan S. H., Moore C. J., vom Saal F. S.2009a, Thompson R. C., Moore C. J., vom Saal F. S., Swan S. H.2009b, Plastics, the environment and human health: current consensus and future trends, Flakes-to-resin (FTR)recycling with FDA approval, Eco-efficiency: creating more value with less impact, Container deposits: the common sense approach v.2.1, WRAP food grade HDPE recycling process: commercial feasibility study, Annual local authorities Plastics Collection Survey 2007, Domestic mixed plastics packaging: waste management options, Large-scale demonstration of viability of recycled PET (rPET) in retail packaging, LCA of management options for mixed waste plastics, Local authorities Plastics Collection Survey, Study reveals carbon impact of bottling Australian wine in the UK in PET and glass bottles, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, Plastics, the environment and human health, http://www.bpf.co.uk/Oil_Consumption.aspx, http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/strategy/factsheets/landfilltax.htm, http://www.ephc.gov.au/ephc/plastic_bags.html, http://www.environ.ie/en/Environment/Waste/PlasticBags, http://www.grrn.org/beverage/refillables/Europe.html, http://www.wbcsd.org/includes/getTarget.asp?type=d&id=ODkwMQ, http://www.wrap.org.uk/retail/case_studies_research/rpet_retail.html, http://www.wrap.org.uk/wrap_corporate/news/study_reveals_carbon.html, high with natural HDPE bottles, but more complex for opaque bottles and trays because of wide variety of grades and colour and mixtures with LDPE and PP, poor recovery because of cross-contamination with PET, poor recovery rates, mostly as mixed polyolefins that can have sufficient properties for some applications. 2005) and these find greater positive environmental benefits for mechanical recycling over landfill and incineration with energy recovery. endobj

Even degradable plastics may persist for a considerable time depending on local environmental factors, as rates of degradation depend on physical factors, such as levels of ultraviolet light exposure, oxygen and temperature (Swift & Wiles 2004), while biodegradable plastics require the presence of suitable micro-organisms. In addition, labels and adhesive materials should be selected to maximize recycling performance. M7nBx%i. Careers, plastics recycling, plastic packaging, environmental impacts, waste management, chemical recycling, energy recovery, Good practices guide on waste plastics recycling, Aguado J., Serrano D. P., San Miguel G.2007, European trends in the feedstock recycling of plastic wastes, Assessment of environmental biodegradation of synthetic polymers, Applications and societal benefits of plastics, An analysis of plastics consumption and recovery in Europe, Life cycle assessment of a plastic packaging recycling system, Recycling of polymeric materials used for food packaging: current status and perspectives, Standard guide to development of ASTM standards relating to recycling and use of recycled plastics, British Plastics Federation. %PDF-1.7 % A model of plastics recycling: does recycling reduce the amount of waste? Even when a plastic item degrades under the influence of weathering, it first breaks down into smaller pieces of plastic debris, but the polymer itself may not necessarily fully degrade in a meaningful timeframe.