Recent Advancements in Plastic Packaging Recycling: A Mini-Review

Abstract

Today, the scientific community is facing crucial challenges in delivering a healthier world for future generations. Among these, the quest for circular and sustainable approaches for plastic recycling is one of the most demanding for several reasons. Indeed, the massive use of plastic materials over the last century has generated large amounts of long-lasting waste, which, for much time, has not been object of adequate recovery and disposal politics. Most of this waste is generated by packaging materials. Nevertheless, in the last decade, a new trend imposed by environmental concerns brought this topic under the magnifying glass, as testified by the increasing number of related publications. Several methods have been proposed for the recycling of polymeric plastic materials based on chemical or mechanical methods. A panorama of the most promising studies related to the recycling of polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polystyrene (PS) is given within this review.

Sustainable recycling technologies for thermoplastic polymers and their composites: A review of the state of the art

“…This process is typically prefferd for harsh depolymerization polymers and those polymers that are difficult to recycle using mechanical recycling methods like mixtures of PS/PE/PP, reinforced fibers, and multilayred packaging materials. [ 98 ] As per the review work done by Armenise et al, [ 99 ] the works related to plastics pyrolysis between 2001 and 2020 were 549 articles (82%), 31 review (4%), and 90 proceedings (14%). The clear illustration of publications related to plastic pyrolysis is illustrated in Figure 8.…”

Agri-Food Wastes for Bioplastics: European Prospective on Possible Applications in Their Second Life for a Circular Economy

“…The 21st century is affected by increasingly difficult climatic conditions that require the rethinking and redesign of the use, recovery, and recycling of polymeric materials with an integrated approach [111]. The circular economy is pushing toward radical changes in production and waste management, pursuing to reduce water, waste, and energy, contributing to achieving zero-waste production and environmentally sustainable management cycles [112,113].…”

A general electrochemical strategy for upcycling polyester plastics into added-value chemicals by a CuCo2O4catalyst

“…[10][11][12][13] Nevertheless, the currently used pyrolysis usually demands high temperatures and pressures, resulting in high energy consumption and low product selectivity, significantly limiting its applicability. 14,15 Recently, several new methods (e.g. photo-reforming, [16][17][18][19][20] biodegradation, 12,21,22 microwave-depolymerization 23,24 ) have been reported, but these still suffer from low catalytic efficiency, low product selectivity, and complex product isolation/purification processes.…”