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Polymers: From Waste to Potential Reuse
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Polymers: From Waste to Potential Reuse

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymeric Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 February 2025) | Viewed by 12492

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Lucia Sansone

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Rome, Italy
Interests: materials; polymers; coating; biomaterials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, environmental pollution is a problem affecting our ability to solve the impacts of polymer solid waste that are evident in the ever-increasing levels of global plastic pollution, both on land and in the oceans. Plastics have become widely used materials in everyday life due to their special properties such as their durability, easy processing, lightweight nature, and low cost of production. However, because of their stable and nonbiodegradable nature, postconsumer plastics become an issue to the environment. Growing amounts of waste are generated, as plastic products are commonly used only once before disposal. The alternatives of practical techniques for solid waste management are redesign, reprocessing, and recycling. Recycling techniques should be constantly developed. The recycling of plastic waste helps to conserve natural resources due to polymeric materials being made from oil and gas. There are four main recycling methods: reuse, mechanical recycling, chemical recycling, and energy recovery.

This Special Issue focuses on recent advances in recycling waste methods, redesign, and processing, in particular polymer recovery from waste to reuse.

It is our pleasure to invite you to contribute original full research papers, short communications, and state-of-the-art reviews to this Special Issue.

Dr. Lucia Sansone
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • polymers
  • waste
  • recovery
  • environment pollution
  • recycling
  • mechanical recycling
  • chemical recycling
  • energy recovery

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 3756 KiB  
Article
An Analysis of Changes in the Harmfulness of the Bottle Packaging Process Depending on the Type of Heat-Shrinkable Film
by Patrycja Walichnowska, Weronika Kruszelnicka, Adam Mazurkiewicz, Zbigniew Kłos, Anna Rudawska and Michał Bembenek
Materials 2024, 17(16), 4115; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17164115 - 20 Aug 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1265
Abstract
This article shows an analysis of selected stages of a machine’s life cycle environmental impact in the specific case of machines that package bottles in thermo-shrinkable film. As part of this analysis, laboratory tests were carried out to compare the performance properties of [...] Read more.
This article shows an analysis of selected stages of a machine’s life cycle environmental impact in the specific case of machines that package bottles in thermo-shrinkable film. As part of this analysis, laboratory tests were carried out to compare the performance properties of polyethylene films (with and without recycled material). Then, a life cycle assessment (LCA) was carried out within the specified system boundaries using the SimaPro program. Using the ReCiPe 2016 method, differences in the impact of the mass bottle packaging process on the categories human health, ecosystems and resources were determined depending on the shrink film used in the process. These tests showed that the tested batch of film with the addition of recyclates has similar functional properties to traditional ones and can therefore be used in the mass packaging process. The environmental analysis showed that changing the type of film to film with the addition of recyclates results in an almost 70% reduction in the potential negative impact of the process in terms of damage to health and ecosystems, and by 85% in terms of resources. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymers: From Waste to Potential Reuse)
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19 pages, 2961 KiB  
Article
Waste Study on Flexible Food and Non-Food Packaging: Detailed Analysis of the Plastic Composition of European Polyethylene-Containing Waste Streams
by Nelly Freitag, Johannes Schneider, Virginie Decottignies, Tanja Fell, Esra Kucukpinar and Martin Schlummer
Materials 2024, 17(13), 3202; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17133202 - 30 Jun 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2878
Abstract
Despite extensive sorting, packaging waste often contains a mixture of different materials that make high-quality recycling difficult, especially in the case of flexible packaging. This is partly due to the widespread use of multi-layer laminates and packaging consisting of different inseparably combined materials. [...] Read more.
Despite extensive sorting, packaging waste often contains a mixture of different materials that make high-quality recycling difficult, especially in the case of flexible packaging. This is partly due to the widespread use of multi-layer laminates and packaging consisting of different inseparably combined materials. To improve the post-consumer recyclate quality and develop optimised recycling processes, it is important to generate a comprehensive understanding of the composition of the sorted packaging waste streams. Therefore, in this study, polyolefin sorting fractions for flexible packaging waste from three European countries are analysed in detail. By selective extraction of the different plastics, their mass fractions in the waste streams are determined. This shows that the PE-rich sorting fractions for flexible packaging are made up of 85–90% of PE, but also contain a certain proportion of foreign materials. A detailed analysis of the layer structures of various types of packaging also provides information on the prevalence of multi-layer packaging and the polymer and non-polymer materials used therein. This shows that particularly in food packaging, with 63–84% of multi-layer and 50–70% of multi-material packaging, a high proportion of foreign materials is used and introduced into the sorting fractions. These insights provide a valuable contribution to the development of recyclable packaging, potential sorting streams and recycling processes, especially with regard to the challenges of the closed-loop recycling of food packaging. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymers: From Waste to Potential Reuse)
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16 pages, 2779 KiB  
Article
Rheological and Functional Properties of Mechanically Recycled Post-Consumer Rigid Polyethylene Packaging Waste
by Ezgi Ceren Boz Noyan, Franziska Rehle and Antal Boldizar
Materials 2024, 17(8), 1855; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17081855 - 17 Apr 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2305
Abstract
The properties of recycled post-consumer rigid polyethylene packaging waste were studied, using sorted waste washed in the laboratory with water alone and with added detergent, and compared with large-scale high-intensity washed flakes. The washed flakes were compounded using three different temperature profiles in [...] Read more.
The properties of recycled post-consumer rigid polyethylene packaging waste were studied, using sorted waste washed in the laboratory with water alone and with added detergent, and compared with large-scale high-intensity washed flakes. The washed flakes were compounded using three different temperature profiles in a twin-screw extruder and then injection molded. A higher compounding temperature reduced the thermo-oxidative stability, the average molecular mass, and the viscosity of the samples. Rheological measurements suggested that changes in chain branching occurred at different compounding temperatures. The strength and the elongation at break were also influenced by the compounding temperature in both the molten and solid states. Detergent washing maintained the thermo-oxidative stability in contrast to washing with water. The large-scale washed samples had a relatively high thermo-oxidative stability, a higher melt elasticity, and a lower elongation at break in both the molten and solid states than the laboratory-scale washed samples. The thermal properties, melt elasticity, Young’s modulus, yield stress, and yield strain of the samples were not, however, significantly affected by either the compounding temperature or the washing medium and intensity. The results indicated that recycled post-consumer rigid polyethylene packaging waste has properties that can support further applications in new products. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymers: From Waste to Potential Reuse)
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24 pages, 9586 KiB  
Article
The Development of Sustainable Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol-Based (PETG) Blends for Additive Manufacturing Processing—The Use of Multilayered Foil Waste as the Blend Component
by Mikołaj Garwacki, Igor Cudnik, Damian Dziadowiec, Piotr Szymczak and Jacek Andrzejewski
Materials 2024, 17(5), 1083; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17051083 - 27 Feb 2024
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3020
Abstract
The polymer foil industry is one of the leading producers of plastic waste. The development of new recycling methods for packaging products is one of the biggest demands in today’s engineering. The subject of this research was the melt processing of multilayered PET-based [...] Read more.
The polymer foil industry is one of the leading producers of plastic waste. The development of new recycling methods for packaging products is one of the biggest demands in today’s engineering. The subject of this research was the melt processing of multilayered PET-based foil waste with PETG copolymer. The resulting blends were intended for additive manufacturing processing using the fused deposition modeling (FDM) method. In order to improve the properties of the developed materials, the blends compounding procedure was conducted with the addition of a reactive chain extender (CE) and elastomeric copolymer used as an impact modifier (IM). The samples were manufactured using the 3D printing technique and, for comparison, using the traditional injection molding method. The obtained samples were subjected to a detailed characterization procedure, including mechanical performance evaluation, thermal analysis, and rheological measurements. This research confirms that PET-based film waste can be successfully used for the production of filament, and for most samples, the FDM printing process can be conducted without any difficulties. Unfortunately, the unmodified blends are characterized by brittleness, which makes it necessary to use an elastomer additive (IM). The presence of a semicrystalline PET phase improves the thermal resistance of the prepared blends; however, an annealing procedure is required for this purpose. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymers: From Waste to Potential Reuse)
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23 pages, 8440 KiB  
Article
Mechanical Strength and Surface Analysis of a Composite Made from Recycled Carbon Fibre Obtained via the Pyrolysis Process for Reuse in the Manufacture of New Composites
by Rita C. M. Sales-Contini, Hugo M. S. Costa, Heide H. Bernardi, William M. M. Menezes and Francisco J. G. Silva
Materials 2024, 17(2), 423; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17020423 - 14 Jan 2024
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2011
Abstract
This work aims to obtain recycled carbon fibre and develop an application for this new material. The carbon fibres were obtained by recycling aerospace prepreg waste via the pyrolysis process. The recycled fibres were combined with an Araldite LH5052/Aradur LY5053 epoxy resin/hardener system [...] Read more.
This work aims to obtain recycled carbon fibre and develop an application for this new material. The carbon fibres were obtained by recycling aerospace prepreg waste via the pyrolysis process. The recycled fibres were combined with an Araldite LH5052/Aradur LY5053 epoxy resin/hardener system using manual lay-up and vacuum bagging processes. For comparison, the same resin/hardener system was used to produce a composite using commercial carbon fibre. The recycled and commercial composites were subjected to flexural, tensile and Mode I testing. Fracture aspects were analysed via scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The pyrolysis process did not affect the fibre surface as no degradation was observed. The fracture aspect showed a mixture of failure in the recycled composite laminate and interlaminar/translaminar failure near the surface of the commercial composite caused by flexural stress. Flexural and tensile tests showed a loss of mechanical strength due to the recycling process, but the tensile values were twice as high. The sand ladder platform was the project chosen for the development of a product made with recycled carbon fibres. The product was manufactured using the same manufacturing process as the specimens and tested with a 1243 kg car. The method chosen to design, manufacture and test the prototype sand ladder platform made of recycled carbon fibre was appropriate and gave satisfactory results in terms of high mechanical strength to bending and ease of use. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymers: From Waste to Potential Reuse)
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