PET Recycling

PET PLASTICS AND PET RECYCLING

Name

Instructors name

Course

Date

PET Recycling

Table of Contents:

1.1 Abstract... 4 2.1 Introduction. 5 3.1 Literature review. 8 4.1 Background Information..15 4.1.1 Research questions and Hypotheses.18 4.2 Methodology....................................................19 5.1 Results.20 6.1 Discussion...30 7.1 Conclusion...35 8.1 Recommendations...37 9.1 References...41

PET Recycling

Commonly used terms and abbreviations:

PET -

Polyethylene Terephthalate

HDPE- High-Density Polyethylene: PVCLDPEPolyvinyl chloride: Low-Density Polyethylene:

DMT- Di Methelene Terephthalate.

PP-

Polypropylene.

PS-

Polystyrene

PET Recycling

1.1 Abstract: The project is about the PET plastics and PET recycling. This is a process of recycling plastics that are recyclable from the environment. PET is a thermoplastic polymer resin belonging to the polyester family. It is basically used in the manufacture of synthetic fibres, food and beverage liquid containers. Other uses include the thermoforming applications and the engineering resins where it is often mixed with glass fibre. On the methodology, research has shown that mixing starch with plastic will lower degradation, but it still doesn't lead to total breakdown of the plastic. Bacteria have been genetically engineered to synthesize a completely biodegradable plastic, but this material is expensive at present. Recycling of plastics reduces the trash dumped in dumpsites, and provides the chance for consumers to reuse containers for everything. Recycling plastic containers that contain PET or HDPE labels on the neck of the container will make distinction of nonrecyclable and recyclable plastic easier on customers or clients. It is recommended that the current bottle bills should also be expanded even to other countries. 2 million tons of plastic bottles ended up in the trash instead of in recycling bins in America in the year 2005 alone. The State container deposit law which is known as "bottle bills" are long overdue for an upgrade. They have shown to be effective in collecting bottles and cans. Currently, only 11 states have bottle bills in America.

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2.1. Introduction: Plastics are indeed everywhere, from the grocery to the shopping mall. They are important in the packaging industry, but a closer look at the plastics brings into focus the price to be paid by using and dumping it the wrong way. This therefore calls for a lot of care. Before you toss that plastic bag to the environment then be sure of the impact you are creating. Plastics are very durable and this means that they will degrade very slowly therefore takes long in the environment. Decomposition by burning also creates serious toxic fumes in the atmosphere. The production as well takes some amount of fossil fuels which pollutes the environment (Tukker, 2002). Several plastics debris remains floating on the sea surface and this creates danger to the marine life. Most sea animals have died due to the ingestion of plastic materials. Solar radiation degrades plastics into smaller particles which eventually becomes plastic dust and goes to pollute the atmosphere. The acronym PET stands for Polyethylene terephthalate. This is a thermoplastic polymer resin belonging to the polyester family. It is basically used in the manufacture of synthetic fibres, food and beverage liquid containers. Other uses include the thermoforming applications and the engineering resins where it is often mixed with glass fibre. The monomer can be processed in several ways and these include: The esterification of terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol with water as the by product. It can also be synthesized through transesterification of dimethyl terephthalate and ethylene glycol with methanol as the by product. Finally it can be polymerized through polycondensation of the monomers with water as the by product.PET is commonly referred to as polyester and is the third most abundant plastic production behind polyethylene and poly propylene (Tierney & John 2006). It is widely used in the production of synthetic fibres.

PET Recycling

Due to this damage to the environment, it is therefore imperative to develop ways of recycling the plastics and this brings us to the actual project that is PET plastics and PET recycling. The objective of the project is basically to reduce plastics in the environment through recycling. It also aims at developing appropriate measures to deal with the plastic menace. The project also focuses on achieving a clean environment which is safe to live in. It also aims at fostering recycling of plastics as the best option to keep them off the environment. The recycling processes with polyester are as wide as the manufacturing processes based on primary pellets. Polyester is used currently in the polyester manufacturing processes as a mixture with virgin polymer or as 100% recycled polymer. This will depend on the purity of the recycled materials. There are some reservations like BOPET-film with low thickness and special uses like yarns or optical film or microfilaments and micro-fibersor microfilaments that are produced from virgin polyester only. There exist a number of internal recycling processes where fibre is reused directly to produce fibre and the same to both performs and films. In a nut shell the following general simple procedure is used in the process. First is the bale opening, followed by the sorting and selection for different colours foreign polymers. Next is the pre-washing without cutting before the cutting process. Stones are then removed and other debris like glass and metal. Air sifting is done to remove film paper and labels. It is then ground and low density polymers removed. Hot wash is done followed by caustic wash to maintain intrinsic viscosity. After which the rinsing is done twice. It is then dried and followed by air sifting flakes before sorting the flakes automatically. Water circuit and water treatment technology is then employed to attain flake quality.

PET Recycling

There exist some defects which are encountered during the process. They can be grouped into several categories. The reactive polyester OH or COOH end groups could be transformed into non reactive end groups like the formation of vinyl ester end group. The end group could also shift towards the direction of the COOH end groups. This would be due to build up during thermal and oxidative degradation. The number of poly-functional macromolecules could also increase. The number, variety and concentration of non- polymer identical organic and inorganic compounds may increase. They can be detected either chemically or physically through the following processes. Increase of COOH end group, increase of color number B, increase of oligomer content, reduction in filterability, increase of by products like acetaldehyde, increase of extractable foreign contaminants, decrease in colour L, decrease ofl intrinsic viscosity, decrease of crystallization temperature and increase in crystallization speed, decrease in mechanical properties like tensile strength, broadening of molecular weight distribution. The statement of the problem to the project states that although plastics are very important to the users, proper disposal through recycling is required to avoid massive environmental degradation.

PET Recycling

3.1. Literature Review: Plastics have a major impact in the society due to poor disposal. Most marine lives, human lives and even the terrestrial animals lives have been lost due to this menace of plastics. This therefore calls for the appropriate measures to curtail the problem. The most appropriate method is then use of then recycling technology to keep the plastic materials out of the environment. On the other hand there are scholars who claim the benefits of plastic materials outweigh their negative impact to the environment (Thomas & Visakh 2011). Some of the benefits floated include: In electronics, laptops could not function well in case they were made from glass. Plastics are used in building and construction as a cheaper material as compared to the others. They are indeed very useful in the packaging industry. Plastics have slowly taken over the normal paper in the packaging industry. Plastics are very durable and their manufacture is very cheap. It can as well be recycled rather decomposing it. This can be achieved easily than producing a new one. Plastics can be reused over and over again as opposed to the aluminum materials. They do not corrode as does with the metals. They are not breakable as with the glass materials. Plastics are light in weight and are usually odourless and thus can be used to carry most things. PET is an acronym that stands for Polyethylene terephthalate. This is a thermoplastic polymer resin belonging to the polyester family. It is basically used in the manufacture of synthetic fibres, food and beverage liquid containers. Other uses include the thermoforming applications and the engineering resins where it is often mixed with glass fibre. The monomer can be processed in several ways and these include: The esterification of terephthalic acid and

PET Recycling

ethylene glycol with water as the by product. It can also be synthesized through transesterification of ethylene glycol and dimethyl terephthalate with methanol as the by product. Finally it can be polymerized through polycondensation of the monomers with water as the by product.PET is commonly referred to as polyester and is the third most abundant plastic production behind polyethylene and poly propylene. It is widely used in the production of synthetic fibres. Due to the addition of polyvinyl alcohol, there is a reduction in oxygen permeability. PET is considered an excellent barrier material as some health practitioners use gloves made of this material. It is usually used in tape applications like in the carrier for magnetic tape or the backing for pressure sensitive adhesive tapes due to its high mechanical strength. Thermoformed PET can be used in the storage of frozen dinners. This is because of their ability to withstand extreme temperatures. Nylon is a product of PET. It is naturally strong with high strength and ability to form several products. PET has a variable intrinsic viscosity range. The process of manufacturing PET takes distinct stages. The initial stage is the Drying stage. This is achieved since PET is hygroscopic. Drying is achieved by the use a desiccant. This is basically achieved by the passage of a series of hot air through the material. It can also be done by the use compressed air. The next stage is the modification through copolymerization. An example is where the melting point can be lowered through the addition of cyclohexane dimethanol. Copolymerization is very important in the thermoforming and in the crystallization process like the material used in the seat belts. Crystallization of polymers occurs when a polymer chains fold to form some repeating pattern.

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PET is considered a semi-crystalline polymer since only 40% of the polymer is amorphous. The solid state crystallization is a process in which PET is crystallized to glass like substance through a very rapid cooling process. For the process to make effectively, a catalyst must be employed in the form of Antimony trioxide (Sb2O3). Exposing PET to boiling or microwave could increase levels of antimony. This could be detrimental to the health status of individuals who consume products packaged with such material. Environmental Health Perspectives in April 2010 claims that PET might yield endocrine disruptions. Contrary to this Franz and Welle gave evidence based on mathematical modeling claiming that PET is unlikely to yield endocrine disruptions when consumed in mineral water. The degradation process of PET takes different forms like the hydrolytic, thermal oxidation and the thermal which is the most important. This degradation process leads to discolouration, chain scissions due to reduced molecular weight and the formation of other products like the acetaldehyde and crosslinks. This interferes with the optimal requirements especially in the packaging industry. The best way to alleviate this menace is through the use of copolymers. These will lower the melting point and reduce the degree of its crystallinity. The use of stabilizers like phosphites which are mainly antioxidants can also stabilize the polymer. Acetaldehyde can cause foul taste in bottled water when formed onto the walls of the container. There are two ways employed in the recycling of PET. They are the chemical and the mechanical. The chemical process destroys all the structure thereby forming new intermediates like cis--hydroxyterephthalate. In mechanical recycling, the original properties of the polymer are being maintained. Chemical recycling comes in handy when large tones of the product are needed within a very short time. Mechanical recycling is used in small and medium scale industries. Apart from the general contaminants from the first stage of formation, mechanical

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impurities depreciate the quality of the recycling process. This calls for efficient sorting, cleaning and separation process in order to attain optimum results. The industry consists of three major sections: The Waste Logistics section where collection and separation of wastes is done (Porter, 2002), the Flake production section where clean bottles are produced and the Flake Processing section where PET flakes are converted to final products. There exist a number of internal recycling processes where fibre is reused directly to produce fibre and the same to both performs and films. In a nut shell the following general simple procedure is used in the process. First is the bale opening then followed by the sorting and selection for different colours, foreign polymers? Next is the pre-washing without cutting before the cutting process. Stones are then removed and other debris like glass and metal. Air sifting is done to remove film paper and labels. It is then ground and low density polymers removed. Hot wash is done followed by caustic wash to maintain intrinsic viscosity. After which the rinsing is done twice. It is then dried and followed by air sifting flakes before sorting the flakes automatically. Water circuit and water treatment technology is then employed to attain flake quality. The defects encountered during the process can be grouped into several categories. The reactive polyester OH or COOH end groups could be transformed into non reactive end groups like the formation of vinyl ester end group. The end group could also shift towards the direction of the COOH end groups. This would be due to build up during thermal and oxidative degradation. The number of poly-functional macromolecules could also increase. The number, variety and concentration of non- polymer identical organic and inorganic compounds may increase.

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These can be detected chemically or physically through the following processes. Increase of COOH end group, increase of color number B, increase of oligomer content, reduction in filterability, increase of by products like acetaldehyde, increase of extractable foreign contaminants, decrease in color L, decrease of intrinsic viscosity, decrease of crystallization temperature and increase in crystallization speed, decrease in mechanical properties like tensile strength, broadening of molecular weight distribution. There are several examples for processing polyester. The recycling processes with polyester are as varied as the manufacturing processes based on primary pellets. Polyester is used currently in the polyester manufacturing processes as a mixture with virgin polymer or as 100% recycled polymer. This will depend on the purity of the recycled materials. There are some exceptions like BOPET-film of low thickness, special applications like optical film or yarns spinning at > 6000 m/min. The processes include simple re-pelletizing of bottle waste into flakes. This involves changing waste into flakes, crystallizing and drying the flakes or by and filtering or plasticizing, and by pelletizing. The product has an intrinsic viscosity is amorphous and re-granulate. Viscosity is in the range of 0.550.7 dl/g, depending on the pre- drying state of the flakes. They have to be dried and crystallized before further processing. Manufacturing is done in order to obtain the following a PET film for thermoforming, addition of PET virgin production, packaging film, PET bottle resin by SSP, Carpet yearn, Engineering plastic, Filaments, Non woven materials, Packaging stripes, Stable fibre. By selecting re-pelletizing way implies having extra conversion which is one side energy intensive, causes thermal destruction and cost consuming. On the contrary, pelletizing step is providing the following advantages: intensive

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melt filtration, intermediate quality control, modification by additives, product selection and separation by quality, increased processing flexibility, and quality uniformity. The other process is the manufacture of PET pellets or flakes for bottles. This is a bottle to bottle process. It is similar to the one described above in principle; however, pellets are directly solidified then cast to a solid-state polycondensation (SSP) in a vertical tube reactor a tumbling drier (Piringer, 2000). The corresponding intrinsic viscosity of 0.80 0.085 dl/g is rebuild at the same moment; the acetaldehyde concentration is reduced to 1 ppm in this process. Besides its approval it is nevertheless important that an individual who uses the process has to regularly check the optimums of the raw materials manufactured by the individual for the process. There is also the direct conversion of bottle flakes. This is done to minimize costs. Polyester intermediate producers like spinning mills, strapping mills or cast film mills, strapping mills or spinning mils are developing the direct use of the PET-flakes. This is done from the treatment of used containers, with a view of increasing number of polyester intermediates. It is possibly necessary to recapture the viscosity through polycondensation in the solid-state polycondensation of the flakes in order to adjust the viscosity by the application of double screw extruders, multi-rotation systems or multi-screw extruders and coincidental vacuum degassing. These are indeed the current PET flake conversion processes. They allow the conversion of nondried PET flakes without substantial viscosity decrease caused by hydrolysis. About 70% is of PET bottle flakes are converted to fibers and filaments. In direct secondary materials like the bottle flakes, there are some codes to obtain. The first being the high speed spinning process for the manufacture of POY. A viscosity of 0.62

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0.64 dl/g is needed. The viscosity can be set via the degree of drying beginning from the bottle flakes. For full dull or semi dull yarn the use of TiO2 must be added. An efficient filtration of the melt is necessary for the protection of spinnerets. Staple fibres may also be spun in an intrinsic viscosity range which lies lower and which should be between 0.58 to 0.62 dl/g. The viscosity can be adjusted via drying or vacuum adjustment in case of vacuum extrusion. However, the addition of chain length modifiers like ethylene glycol or diethylene glycol may be used. The basic spinning non-woven materials in the field for textile industry as well as heavy spinning non-woven materials like roof covers or road building can be manufactured by spinning bottle flakes. Spinning viscosity is in the range of 0.580.65 dl/g. The manufacture of high tenacity packaging stripes and monofilaments is another area of great interest. The initial raw material is a recycled material of higher intrinsic viscosity. The monofilaments as well as the high tenacity packaging stripes are then manufactured in the melt spinning process. The recycling of PET back to the initial raw materials takes three major processes. The first process is the glycolysis or partial glycolysis process. The polyester is changed into an oligomer by adding ethylene glycol or other glycols in thermal treatment. Advantage of this process is the probability of differentiating the mechanical deposits efficiently and directly through a stepwise and progressive filtration (Mantia, 2002). The quality of the end product depends on the filtration finess of the last step. This demonstrates how wastes can be recycled in an operating polyester line. The quality of the bottle pellets which are manufactured on the line are maintained with 10-25% bottle flakes feeding into the processor. Temperature is brought to the lowest possible limit. The probability of a chemical degradation of hydro peroxides is available when there is addition of a corresponding P-stabilizer when plasticizing. Treatment by adding H3PO3 in the last step helps in the destruction of hydro

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peroxide groups. The finely filtered recycled and partially glycolyzed material is continuously fed to the esterification or prepolycondensation reactor. Dosing quantities are adjusted accordingly. Japan has used the treatment of waste through total glycolysis to convert polyester to Cis-B hydroxyl-terephthalate in experimental production. The next process is through hydrolysis which operates under very high pressures and supercritical conditions. PET-waste is directly hydrolyzed for example by applying supercritical water steam. Re-crystallization in acetic acid will help in oxygenation of crude terephthalic acid. The final process is the methanolysis which is basically for the large scale production. Polyester wastes are changed into DMT with methanol, under extreme pressure and with catalysts. Filtration of the methanolysis product is then applied. Crude DMT is finally purified by vacuum distillation. Methanolysis is only rarely carried out in industry today since polyester production shrunk extremely and with this DMT producers disappeared step by step within the last decade. 4.1 Background Information: Plastics have had an impact on our culture. However, it has become normal that by using them then there is a price to be paid. A controversy arose in the late 1950s and early 1960s where there occurred several cases of young children getting into plastic bags that were probably used by the launderers then died of suffocation. Plastics industry fended off the trouble by launching a massive public-education campaign. Collection programs for plastics are now being offered by several local authorities right from recycling centres or from your kerbside collection scheme. By late 1960s plastics were seen as the symbol for backwardness. However, this was merely a flashy statement. This is because the plastics are all over. In most instances this

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was more effective and environmentally insignificant than the alternative materials in the market. It also came with problems of litter and waste disposal. However, the invention is credited to Nathaniel Wyeth of Du Pont according to the American Patent No. 3733309 of 1973. Plastics have been exponentially good, as they are long lasting and decomposed very slowly. Burning of the plastic material could release toxic fumes. The manufacture of plastics has generally managed to create massive masses of deadly pollutants. This has indeed eroded the Earth's abundant store of fossils. Plastic recycling programs became common in the 1990s (Lundquist, 2000). Thermoset plastics can be ground and used as filler; thermoplastics can be remelted and used over again. The material declines in its purity as the cycles continue. Automobile machines are now being redesigned to make recycling of their large plastic parts much easier and cheaper. The Society of the Plastics Industry in collaboration with the Plastic Bottle Institute formulated the now-common program to make marks on plastic bottles according to the type of plastic in order to assist in the recycling of plastic disposable items. The material under this program is specifically marked using a single triangle. Inside the triangle are three chasing arrows that cover it thus providing the type of the plastics PET, HDPE, PVC, LDPE, PP, PS, and OTHER as shown in the table below.

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Plastic container code system:

MATERIAL

PERCENT OF TOTAL

Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET)

20-30 percent

High Density Polyethylene

50-60 percent

Vinyl/Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)

5-10 percent

Low Density Polyethylene

5-10 percent

Polypropylene

5-10 percent

Polystyrene

5-10 percent

All other resins

5-10 percent

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4.1.1 Research questions and Hypotheses:

The assumptions of the study and the research questions are as follows:

i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii. viii. ix. x.

Are plastics generally a menace to the environment and society at large? Can plastics be eradicated completely from our environment? What are the major cost benefit analyses of the plastic materials? What are the benefits of using PET plastics? Are there other materials that can replace in the PET plastics in the common market? Recycling of PET is much better than producing new plastics. Recycling of PET reduces environmental pollution. Recycled PET is the material of choice to be used. Recycling PET comes with its demerits. Recycling of PET reduces costs and is much cheaper than the virgin type.

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4.2 Methodology: Recycling plastics has proved to be very difficult. It is difficult to Automating the sorting of plastic waste is very difficult, and so it is labor-intensive (Harper, 2000). Cellular phone toys are manufactured from several tiny sub sets of plastics which consist of over a thousand different colors and types of plastics yet the normal bottles are manufactured from only one color and type of plastic. This has made the sorting out of these bottles much easier than the other materials. As the value of the material is low, recycling plastics is unprofitable and for this reason, the percentage of plastics recycled is very small, that is around 5%. Research is being conducted on "biodegradable" plastics that break down with exposure to sunlight. By mixing starch with plastic degradation will be lowered, but it still doesn't lead to complete breakdown of the plastic. Bacteria have been genetically engineered to make a totally decomposable material. The material is however very expensive in the current market. Critics claim that their only real problem to be addressed is roadside litter, which is regarded as a secondary issue. When plastics are deposited into the dumping sites, they are then mummified to maintain for ages even though they are decomposable biologically. The Courtald who are the bonafide manufacturers of rayon decided to come up with an in depth process to manufacture tencel in the mid 80s. This was a superior quality type of rayon which was just manufactured from the usual biomass of the feedstock. The production is explicitly very clean according to the plastic manufacture standards. I strongly go for the idea

that the consistent and effective education would inspire more consumers to get into the practice of recycling the plastics. If both the adults and the children comprehend the re-processing and

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re-manufacturing of recycled containers then this would help them ownership of the process.

understand and take

For a successful recycling operation to be achieved, the following requirements must be put into place. First of all acquire a very steady source of very high grade and competitive materials. After which, establish a cost effective transportation and collection medium. Create a recycling processing technology and indeed equipment that can handle the material efficiently and economically. Ensure you develop the ability to market both continuous and quality in the quantity of materials. Finally develop proper markets for end products.

5.1 Results: Not all plastics that go into the curbside recycling bin get recycled. Collecting plastics brings the notion that all plastics collected are converted to other new products just like the aluminium and glass. No recovered plastic by the Berkeley company is being transformed into other new containers again. They are however processed into the secondary products like the lumbers, bumpers or textiles. All these are non recyclable products. "Recycled" just means "collected," not reprocessed or converted into useful products. The amount of plastic in the landfills does not reduce due to the curbside collection. This is because people feel comfortable buying more when collection seems to be environmental friendly. The programs might backfire if total use rises faster than collection The curbside program only captures certain types of plastics thus most will end up in the landfills and therefore the overall effect of starting this collection type where curbs are used would just but aggravate the filling of the landfills. According to Berkeley, there is no decline in the plastics

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being deposited in the landfills in the areas where curbside services were being offered. Most reprocessing of plastics results in the secondary products which cannot be recycled and thus are temporarily diverted from landfills. The chasing arrows symbols are misleading and are now considered meaningless. All are marked with the chasing arrows symbol. Information in the symbol gives only the usual type of resin used in the manufacture of the container. Eleven attorneys general from different states in America agreed to the misleading and false claims on the plastic recyclability. The settlement that they reached provides an avenue to clearly distinguish between what false and true claims about the plastic recycling and recyclability (Harper, 2000). Plastic resins are made from non-renewable natural resources. They are not made from petroleum refineries waste. These non-renewable resources can be used in a wide range of applications if not conserved. Plastic recyclers do not pay for the service. The advertisements are paid for by the virgin resin producers. Their goal is to promote plastic sales. Their major aim is to remove or otherwise diminish the greatest challenge to the market expansion brought about by the virgin plastics. The public visualize plastic as environmentally harmful, unrecyclable and the major component of the wastes to be land filled or burned. Virgin resin producers aim at alleviating this negative thought. Using plastics will not conserve energy. Manufacture of new plastic consumes the same energy as that used in making glass from other virgin materials. It also uses more energy than in the one used in making glass containers from recycled materials. Refillables are the most energy conservatives. There are other choices to be adopted which include using refillable containers,

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buying in bulk, buying things that dont want little packaging and also buying materials that are recyclable. There are economic, health, and environmental costs and benefits of plastics. It is flexible and light weight, but on the other hand is problematic. These problems include pollution, accumulation of waste plastic in the environment, movement of polymers into foodstuffs, high energy in the process of manufacture and consumption of fossil resources (Eiri, 2007). The producers do not use any recycled plastic in their packaging. In order to use the virgin resin in packaging then tough laws must be enacted. Some companies have strongly resisted such enactment of recycled content legislation. An example here is the Virgin and Endash Plastics Industry. It has instead defeated or weakened consumer efforts to institute stronger laws. Plastic producers reached to a consensus that none of post consumer resins would be added to their resins. Once plastics are made to appear more ecologically friendly to the retailers and consumers through organized collection, then the plastic consumption would increase tremendously. Curbside collection may legalize the marketing and sales of virgin plastic packages. Curbside areas showed no reduction of "recyclable" plastic containers being thrown away according to studies of waste Lorries in the most recent pilot programs (Harper, 2002). Indeed there was a minute rise. This was in part due to the escalated plastic usage. Glass container plants are being closed down. The Anchor Glass Container Corporation in Antioch is not left behind and thus the 300 employees are jobless. Recycling of plastic is costly and does little to achieve recycling goals. The cost- benefit analysis used in initiating the collection of curbsides in Berkeley portrays that several pitfalls of

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the collection of discarded plastics has several pitfalls. These pit falls include limited benefits in minimizing environmental effects, limited benefits in diverting resources and finally it is very expensive. Psslastics processing costs more than virgin plastic. The markets for used plastic diminish with increase in production and reduction in prices. Competition is too high for the PET recyclers. The capture of yard, glass or paper debris within Berkeley would divert other resources from the landfills than curbside plastic collection. Recycling of plastics comes with some benefits as well. The trash dumped in the dumping sites is diminished due to this process. Consumers will have the opportunity to appropriately clean and reuse the containers. These containers could be used in handling almost everything like the water bottles, shampoo containers and even for the handling of lotions. With the labels on the containers mostly some place across the neck of the bottle, the separation of recyclable and non recyclable plastic becomes much easier onto the consumers. This is indeed the best criteria to be followed in solving this menace. The wealth of products for the future depends on how much of collection and recycling would replace the habit of throwing away the bottles in the bins. New products such as clothing, construction materials, tennis balls, automotive parts, industrial strapping and even carpets can be made from recycled PET (Gehrke, 2010). The market for recycled PET is concentrated only to the amount of material that consumers collect and on the recycling industries. This is fundamentally due to the wide use of PET products and also their ability to be recycled. The closed lop recycling which involves the recycling of used PET into new food grade containers is generally enlarging the sustainability and efficiency of the PET products even further.

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Cost Benefit Analysis of the Different plastics:

Net benefits ($/tonne) of recycling PET:

Text description of figure

Dotted line = no externalities included; solid lines: high and low benefit estimates.

There are indeed encouraging and appealing net benefits for recycling PET for all quantities that are recoverable. It further shows that the net benefit curves are generally flat. They are decreasing relatively with increased quantities

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Net benefits ($/tonne) of recycling HDPE:

Text description of figure: This line graph shows the net benefits ($/tonne) of recycling HDPE. There are positive net benefits for recycling HDPE for all quantities that are recoverable. It shows that the net benefit curves are generally flat and thus is decreasing relatively with increased quantities.

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Net benefits ($/tonne) of recycling PVC:

Text description of figure: This line graph shows the net benefits ($/tonne) of recycling PVC. Only the curve representing the high benefit estimate shows positive net benefits. Both the curves representing low benefit estimates and that with no externalities included show negative net benefits. All curves are fairly flat, the net benefit decreasing (or negative net benefit increasing) slightly with increased quantities.

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Net benefits ($/tonne) of recycling LDPE:

Text description of figure: This line graph shows the net benefits ($/tonne) of recycling LDPE. As with Figure 15, only the curve representing the high benefit estimate shows positive net benefits. Both the curves representing low benefit estimates and those with no externalities included show negative net benefits. All curves are fairly flat, the net benefit decreasing (or negative net benefit increasing) slightly with increased quantities.

From the four figures above we can deduce that there are positive net benefits for recycling PET and HDPE for all quantities that are recoverable. On the other hand for PVC and LDPE, the value of recycling depends crucially on the estimates made of the value of external benefits and particularly the direct consumer benefits. It gives the total quantity produced. This is through the use of current technologies. It further gives the quantities that could be recycled for each material with positive net benefits under high and low benefit assumptions.

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There are a number of strategies that can be used to curb the problems or menace above. First is the reduction in the usage. Retailers and consumers can select products that use little or no packaging. Choose packaging materials that are recycled into new packaging such as glass and paper (Carl, 2005). Should individuals refuse plastic as a packaging material, the industry will decrease production for that purpose, and the associated problems such as energy use, pollution, and adverse health effects will diminish.

The strategies that can be used to curb the problems or menace above are very varied. First is the reduction in the usage. Products that use little or no packaging services are the best choice for both the consumers and retailers. Materials such as glass and paper which can be recycled into new products could also offer a better alternative (Carl, 2005). The associated problems of plastics like health effects, pollution and energy use would only be reduced when individuals decide to refuse using plastics as packaging materials. This would force the industry to reduce the production of these products.

The other strategy is to foster and encourage the culture of re-using containers. Containers should even be reused for over 100 times and this could lead to the diminished market demand for the plastics that are disposable. With this use of energy would be reduced plus the decline in the impacts to the environment. The designers of the containers would have to consider the difference in the following policies "Design for service and "design for disposal". This will enable them to consider the services provided by the containers and also consider the final end of the container past the sales.

The producers also need to take back resins as a major requirement. If manufacturers directly involved with plastic disposal and closing the material loop, then this would encourage

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them be considerate on the life cycle of the product right from the start to the end. Reprocessing should be made much easier by phasing out associated metals like the aluminum seals, use of water dispersible adhesives used in labels, manufacture of collapsible containers, use of just a single resin in every container, limiting the quantity of container types and shapes and eliminating the pigments. Through taking back plastic from consumers, they simply develop the reprocessing infrastructure.

A legislature requiring that all containers be composed of a specific percentage of postconsumer material will reduce the amount of virgin material consumed. There should be a standardized form of labeling (Gleick, 2010). The chasing arrows should not mislead the consumers unnecessarily. Different standardized labels for recycled, recyclable and plastic type X should be developed. On the contrary, recycling saves money in disposal costs, extends disposal capacity, conserves natural resources, creates jobs, and provides a reliable, costeffective feed stock to industry.

Plastic is one of humanity's greatest sins against the environment, a wrong for which only recycling can salvage. Recycling of plastics comes with its negative impacts too. It cannot be read as with simplicity, but elements like to save the planet, reducing greenhouse gases and saving marine life must be given priority. The change brought about in the environment by recycling plastics depends on what type of plastic is collected, destination and the final product. Recycling offers the chance to reprocess and even reuse materials in order top create more objects. it also aids in the declining of the quantity of trash entering the landfills within the Nation. Other fabrics that would have never been imagined would also be produced.

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Recycled plastics are used to create carpet fibers, clothing and dishes, among others. When plastics are recycled or burned, they emit poisonous wastes in form of fumes from the chemical composition of the materials. These once they go to the environment cause serious damage. This is aggravated by the fact that some industries taking part in recycling process like the Mountain Dew and 7-up that manufacture soft drinks have vehemently refused to employ the use of the green bottles. Recycling takes much time of sorting and separation of papers from magazines, the clear plastic from the colored ones. These daily office and household trash gives the individuals sorting them out much stress. The numerous and variable usage of the plastic bottles brings a lot of confusion. These containers can be used for the storage of almost everything right from butter and shampoos, sodas and ketchup.

6.1 Discussion:

Consumers and businesses must participate actively in the recycling process in order to gain most of the PETs environmental sustainability and benefits. Though PET is the most recycled plastic in the world at a rate of approximately 28%, there is still need to improve in this sector accordingly to meet the demands of the people. It is however very unfortunate that some individuals still carelessly toss their used bottles right into the trash bin rather than putting them into the recycle bin (Board, 2007). These therefore end up in landfills instead of being recycled for new uses. Due to its being inert and resistant to micro-organisms, PET materials that go into the landfills will pose no risk of leaching or contamination of groundwater. They at the same time take very little space since they are easy to crush. About 1% of municipal solid waste is attributed to the PET.

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PET containers can be collected or in other words recovered and re-used over again and again. Reduction of waste, re-use of materials and recycling are the best processes so far that can save the environment and the society at large. In order to attain a much more sustainable future, it is indeed necessary to recycle PET bottles and containers. This is because the process is simple and environment friendly. The production of new plastic materials from already recycled materials indeed uses about 67% less energy than in the manufacture of the products from virgin materials. This therefore implies that recycling of plastics frees the energy that could be utilized somewhere else. For example in the year 2008 UK recycled over 5 billion pounds of plastic and this amazingly saved the energy that could be used to heat over 2.5 million homes.

Recycling of plastics comes with some benefits as well. The trash dumped in the dumping sites is diminished due to this process. Consumers will have the opportunity to appropriately clean and reuse the containers. These containers could be used in handling almost everything like the water bottles, shampoo containers and even for the handling of lotions. With the labels on the containers mostly some place across the neck of the bottle, the separation of recyclable and non recyclable plastic becomes much easier onto the consumers. This is indeed the best criteria to be followed in solving this menace.

Greenhouse gas emissions arising from the extraction, pre processing and production are significantly reduced with the substitution of recycled materials with the virgin materials. Generally the recycled materials give an environmentally friendly source of producing new products and substitutes for new plastics. The recycled materials make thousands of everyday products. These include: fleece jackets, carpeting and lumber for outdoor decking. The more plastics are recycled, the more of recycled plastics available. Furthermore, the more plastics are

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bought then the more the industry shall create. Given the current green trends, the demand for plastics may grow very exponentially. This is given by the fact that the demand for plastic materials exceeds the industrys supply. This therefore calls for an elaborate recycling process to help meet the demands of the people.

Due to these factors the number of plastics recycling plants has tripled in the recent years. Just imagine that the recycling of one tone of plastic saves about 7.4 cubic yards of landfill space. Reduction is therefore an important achievement in the recycling industry. New developments are also being carried out to ensure quality plastics are produced. For example some bottled water producers are trying to reduce plastic in their production which is otherwise known as light weighting in order to create an impact. The recycling industry in response to this managed to reduce the weight of PET plastic water bottles by nearly 33% between the year 2000 and 2008. Currently the average weight of 2 litre bottle of soda is about 19 grams lighter than it was in 1977. An approximate of 5.6 billion bottles is sold every year therefore the simple source reduction has managed to eliminate about 200 million pounds of plastic every year.

On the other perspective, recycling of plastics could help in eliminating the negative impacts associated with plastics. Studies have suggested that most of the worlds fossil fuels are used in producing new plastics. This accounts for millions of tons of fuels per year in the environment. Therefore, recycling helps in the preservation of these fuels. It goes ahead to encourage their use in other markets. Since all plastics recyclable, it should be recycled as much as possible. This is on the contrary not being done so and thus leads to massive accumulation of plastics in the landfills. It therefore clearly points out that without proper recycling then the marine life is in complete danger.

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The landfills are closing at an alarming. Two are being closed daily. This land problem is growing at escalating rates in the cities. The cities landfills in the core areas are usually filled to the brim and the individuals residing in the sub urban regions tend to decline from the city residents dumping their trash on their land. Cities along the coast line their waters as dumping sites. This depletes the fish in the waters, serious health implications to the individuals living around the water body and a much polluted beach line. Materials made of plastic make up about 11% of the contents of landfills. So without this recycling project then there will be no land in future for other developments. In order to save space at landfills, plastics are often burned using incinerators. By doing this, fossil fuels, petroleum and the chemicals that are used in production process are emitted to the atmosphere. This increases the greenhouse gas emissions. Recycling would eliminate this by a great margin.

Most plastic containers float on the surface of the oceans. These at times can look like food to larger sea animal, but it comes with fatal consequences. Sea birds, fish and other sea animals do get caught up in the plastic rings which would otherwise strangle them or prevent them from swallowing thereby die of simple negligence. Imagine how recycling could save much life not only to humans, but to animals also. Research is not quite clear on how long it takes for plastic to bio-degrade. Though it has not been round long enough, but amazingly the first plastics made are still around today. However, plastics will surely take centuries in order to degrade completely or even much longer. Plastics have only been around for a hundred years, yet they are already a problem. What amount of plastics will be in our landfills in about five hundred years to come?

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PET is considered an excellent barrier material as some health practitioners use gloves made of this material. It is usually used in tape applications like in the carrier for magnetic tape or the backing for pressure sensitive adhesive tapes due to its high mechanical strength. Thermoformed PET can be used in the storage of frozen dinners. This is because of their ability to withstand extreme temperatures. Nylon is a product of PET. It is naturally strong with high strength and ability to form several products. PET has a variable intrinsic viscosity range

Plastics generally contain harmful chemicals which include, but not limited to the following: PVC, lead, cadmium and other toxins in form of dangerous coloring pigments, stabilizers and plasticizers (Bary, 2003). Some have been found to be very dangerous and their manufacture is currently prohibited. The much more poisonous and older ones are still getting their way into the landfills. Some float on water bodies and thus cause pollution to the waters. The pollutants could seep into the ground and mix with the underground water to cause harm to the animals and even humans. Energy conserved by the recycling of just a single plastic bottle would be equivalent to the energy that powers a 60- watt bulb for over twelve hours. This would power our homes on the energy savings we would gain by recycling every one of those plastic bottles. It is a general fact that recycled plastic materials are found in many unexpected places. These may include: tennis balls, paintbrushes industrial strapping flowerpots, lumber, shower stalls, clothes and carpets. Plastics may also contain oils that could be recycled and reused as fossil fuels.

The recycling process also came up with its hindrances or difficulties. The first problem is the issue of contamination. According to nature of impurities, basic washing can solve this menace. There is also insufficient supply of the plastics for recycling. Some plastics are also too

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thin to recycle. Plastics have different molecular construction; practical recycling will depend majorly on the ability to separate them from each other. This therefore calls for recycling with proper sorting and packaging. Some consumers view plastics as low quality associated with the low class individuals.

Some legislation also prevents the use of plastics. This is detrimental to the market potential of the plastic products. Polymer prices are also very volatile due to the inequality in capacity demand, stock building during the low price situations. The price of virgin plastic is also linked to the oil price. The high collection costs hinder the general process of recycling. Proper development of sorting machines will reduce collecting and sorting costs and at the same time increasing the plastic streams quality.

7.1 Conclusion:

To crown up issues concerning PET Plastics and PET recycling, it is of importance to note that this project is of indeed good value. PET containers can be collected or in other words recovered and re-used over again and again. Reduction of waste, re-use of materials and recycling are the best processes so far that can save the environment and the society at large. In order to attain a much more sustainable future, it is indeed necessary to recycle PET bottles and containers. This is because the process is simple and environment friendly.

Research is not quite clear on how long it takes for plastic to biodegrade. Though it has not been round long enough, but amazingly the first plastics made are still around today. However, plastics will take hundreds of years to degrade fully or even much longer. Plastics

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have only been around for a hundred years, yet they are already a problem. What amount of plastics will be in our landfills in about five hundred years to come?

The production of new plastic materials from already recycled materials indeed uses about 67% less energy than in the manufacture of the products from virgin materials. This therefore implies that recycling of plastics frees the energy that could be utilized somewhere else. For example in the year 2008 UK recycled over 5 billion pounds of plastic and this amazingly saved the energy that could be used to heat over 2.5 million homes.

Research is being conducted on "biodegradable" plastics that break down with exposure to sunlight. By mixing starch with plastic degradation will be lowered, but it still doesn't lead to complete breakdown of the plastic. Bacteria have been genetically engineered to make a totally decomposable material. The material is however very expensive in the current market. Critics claim that their only real problem to be addressed is roadside litter, which is regarded as a secondary issue. When plastics are deposited into the dumping sites, they are then mummified to maintain for ages even though they are decomposable biologically. The Courtald who are the bonafide manufacturers of rayon decided to come up with an in-depth process to manufacture tencel in the mid 80s. This was a superior quality type of rayon which was just manufactured from the usual biomass of the feedstock. The production is explicitly very clean according to the plastic manufacture standards. I strongly go for the idea

that the consistent and effective education would inspire more consumers to get into the practice of recycling the plastics. If both the adults and the children comprehend the re-processing and re-manufacturing of recycled containers then this would help them ownership of the process. understand and take

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Recycling of plastics could help in eliminating the negative impacts associated with plastics. Studies have suggested that most of the worlds fossil fuels are used in producing new plastics (Baird, 2004). This accounts for millions of tons of fuels per year in the environment. Therefore, recycling helps in the preservation of these fuels. It goes ahead to encourage their use in other markets. Since all plastics recyclable, it should be recycled as much as possible. This is on the contrary not being done so and thus leads to massive accumulation of plastics in the landfills. It therefore clearly points out that without proper recycling then the marine life is in complete danger.

According to nature of impurities, basic washing can solve this menace. There is also insufficient supply of the plastics for recycling. Some plastics are also too thin to recycle. Plastics have different molecular construction; practical recycling will depend majorly on the ability to separate them from each other. This therefore calls for recycling with proper sorting and packaging. Some consumers view plastics as low quality associated with the low class individuals.

8.1 Recommendations: In the early 70s not even a single curbside was found in any of the countries. Currently they have grown to unimaginable numbers. Most countries manage to recycle third their municipal waste. The rate of dumping still exceeds that of recycling. Increasing our recycling rates will help pull us out of the garbage heap and reduce global warming emissions. This brings us down to the realization that it is necessary to cut down on the waste we produce in the first place. Recycling is one of the steps in a full loop of practices that, together, will reduce the amount of waste going to landfills and cut back on greenhouse gas emissions. It goes beyond

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bundling up newspapers and collecting bottles. Manufacturers should use recycled materials to make their products, and consumers should buy goods made from post-consumer recycled content in order to close the loop created. Demand for products made with recycled materials should be increased at the expense of virgin materials. This will eventually ensure a much more successful recycling, divert waste from landfills, save natural resources and curb global warming.

Other avenues to work towards a zero waste in the future are as follows: Organics and recyclables should be kept out of landfills and incinerators. Approximately 60 percent of household waste is recyclable or compostable, but only 8% are being composted. Composting helps in preparing organic waste like leftover food and lawn trimmings. The organic waste is reused as fertilizer, instead of leaving it to decompose in landfills or to combust in incinerators, which emit greenhouse gases and other air pollutants. Creating more municipal composting programs should be created to boost composting rates. The programs exist in only a few cities, and they're outnumbered more than 2 to 1 by curbside recycling programs.

We should also consider putting trash cans in our regular diets. What we dump in our trash cans doesn't need to be there in whole. By adopting mechanisms of cutting back on product packaging, promoting reusable bags over paper and plastic, using sponges instead of paper towels, and favoring mugs or glasses over disposable containers, we are indeed just reducing the waste.

There are also ways to boost the rates of recycling and also to curb the menace of global warming. Throwing away our waste creates greenhouse gas emissions just exactly like from driving our cars and heating our homes. Depositing garbage in landfills releases one fourth of all

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methane gas emissions (Andrady, 2003). Contrary to most opinions, methane gas is a global warming pollutant which is 22 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Trash incinerators emit greenhouse gases. Therefore throwing away products rather than reusing or recycling them often means burning more fossil fuels to strip virgin timber and other raw materials from the earth. If we increase our recycling rate from the current 32.5 percent to 35 percent, the effect on greenhouse gas emissions would be comparable to removing a million passenger cars from our roads.

Managing the electronic waste is a major concern in the future. Used and dumped electronics like old computers, broken cell phones, obsolete television sets will form the fastest growing element of our waste stream. Laws are in place for nine states that require the recycling of electronics, and several other states are working on new e-waste laws in America. Most countries support legislations that put the responsibility on manufacturers to recycle their used products, and for designing less toxic, more recyclable gadgets in the first place.

The current bottle bills should also be expanded even to other countries. In 2005, 2 million tons of plastic bottles in the United States ended up in the trash instead of in recycling bins. The State container deposit law which is known as "bottle bills" are long overdue for an upgrade. They have proven to be the most effective approach to collecting bottles and cans. Currently, only 11 states have bottle bills in America, and most of them include only beer and soda bottles but not water bottles, which accounted for 14 percent of bottled beverages in 2005. Such bill with a higher deposit would give a huge boost to our bottle recycling rates.

Plastic bags should also be ditched and left completely. EPA has recorded that the United States consumes about 380 billion plastic bags a year and recycles less than 5 percent of them.

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Reusing shopping bags just as is common in some other countries could reduce that number significantly and prevent billions of plastic bags from ending up in landfills (Auckman, 2007). It could also prevent them from getting into the ocean, on trees and floating by your window. It is necessary to address the plastic problem. San Francisco banned the use and distribution of plastic bags by grocery stores in 2007. Other stores around the country are creating incentives for shoppers to reduce plastic bag use, such as offering cash back for reused bags, selling branded reusable bags and installing in-store bag drop-off stations to encourage reuse. This is a good strategy for future advancement in this sector.

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9.1 References:

Ackerman, Frank. (2007). Why Do We Recycle? Markets, Values, and Public Policy. Iland Press.

Andrady A. L. (2003). Plastics and Environment. New York: Wiley-IEEE.

Baird, Colin (2004) Environmental Chemistry (3rd ed.). New York, W. H. Freeman.

Bary E. A. (2003). Handbook of Plastic Films. London: iSmithers rapra Publishing.

Board E. E. (2007). Plastic Compounding, Masterbatches, PET and Other Plastic Processing Industries. New Delhi: Engineers India Research In.

Carl A. Zimring (2005). Cash for Your Trash: Scrap Recycling in America. New Jersey: Rutgers University Press.

Eiri (2007). Handbook of Polymer & Plastic Technology. New Delhi: Engineers India Research In.

Gehrke R. (2010). Recycling Projects for the Evil Genius. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional.

Gleick P. H. (2010). Bottled and Sold: The Story Behind our Obsession with Bottled London: Island Press.

Water.

Harper C. A. (2006). Handbook of Plastics Technologies: The Complete Guide to Properties and Performance. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional.

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Harper C. A. (2002). Handbook of Plastics, Elastomers and Composites. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional.

Harper C. A. (2000). Modern Plastics Handbook. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional.

Hulse S. (2000). Plastics Product Recycling: A Rapra Industry Analysis Report. London: Smithers Rapra Publishing.

Lundquist L. (2000). Life Cycle Engineering of Plastics: Technology, Economy, and the Environment. New Jersey: Elsevier.

Mantia F. L. (2002). Handbook of Plastics Recycling. London: iSmithers Rapra

Publishing.

Piringer O. G. (2000). Plastic Packaging Materials for Food: Barrier Function, Mass Transport. Quality Assurance and Legislation. New York: John Wiley and Sons

Porter, Richard. (2002). The economics of waste. Resources for the Future.

Thomas S. & Visakh P. M. (2011). Handbook of Engineering and Speciality Thermoplastics. New York: John Wiley and Sons.

Tierney, John. (2006). Recycling Is Garbage. The New York Times.

Tukker A. (2002). Plastics Waste: Feedstock Recycling, Chemical Recycling and incineration. London: Smithers Rapra Publishing.