Overview
This seminar provides comprehensive information about advanced plastic recycling methods. Both traditional and emerging recycling methods will be highlighted. Accumulation of plastic waste in the natural environment and the toxicology of plastics as well as their additives will be discussed. Furthermore, analytical methods and instrumentation to characterize recycled plastics, and the differences in virgin polymers and recycled polymers will be reviewed. Regulation and policy relevant to plastic waste management will also be discussed. Classroom lectures cover the basics of the advanced recycling process and provide case studies that yield inspiration and can be applied in various plastic products.
Audience
This course is appropriate for plastics recyclers, plastic resin suppliers, sales and applications engineers, new product development specialists, product marketing professionals, product designers and engineers, industrial designers and industrial engineers, mechanical engineers, materials purchasing managers, manufacturing personnel and technicians, plant managers, production supervisors, quality assurance and quality control personnel, and anyone involved in sustainability. It will also benefit chemical companies and waste managers.
Content
Status-quo of the Plastic Recycling
- Introduction to plastic materials; definition of sustainability in plastic manufacturing; toxicology of plastic pollutants; micro-/nano-plastics; primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary recycling methods.
Mechanical Recycling of Plastics
- Sorting and separation techniques; polymer additives; methods to characterize recycled polymers; ASTM standards; certification of recycled contents; polymer property characterization; manufacturers or products made from recycled contents; relevant regulatory discussion.
Solvent-based Recycling of Plastics
- Solvent-based dissolution-precipitation; extraction; solubility parameters of polymer; Hansen solubility parameter theory; factors affecting polymer dissolution; Separation of polymer and/or polymer additives; emerging solvents (ionic liquids, supercritical fluids, and deep eutectic solvents).
Thermochemical Recycling of Plastics
- Embodied energy; advanced incineration; gasification; pyrolysis; hydrothermal processes; chemolysis; solvolysis; plastic-derived fuels and chemicals; commercialization efforts.
Lifecycle Assessment
- Cradle-to-gate analysis; cradle-to-grave analysis; cradle-to-cradle analysis; environmental burdens; fossil fuel consumptions.