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15 pages, 4436 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Short- and Long-Term Performance of Pipe Compounds Containing Polyethylene Post-Consumer Recyclates from Packaging Waste

by Paul J. Freudenthaler, Joerg Fischer, Yi Liu and Reinhold W. Lang

Polymers 2022, 14(8), 1581; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/polym14081581 - 13 Apr 2022

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2213

Abstract

The polymer industry is pushed to present solutions that lead to a circular plastics economy. High plastic packaging waste recycling targets will eventually lead to a high availability of packaging material recyclates. Although the use of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recyclates is prescribed by [...] Read more.

The polymer industry is pushed to present solutions that lead to a circular plastics economy. High plastic packaging waste recycling targets will eventually lead to a high availability of packaging material recyclates. Although the use of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recyclates is prescribed by regulations to be used in new PET bottles, no such regulation prescribes the use of polyethylene recyclate (rPE) in new products. One possibility of using rPE, which is considered by the European Union, is the use within pipe materials. Pipe applications demand a certain property profile, most prominently a high slow crack growth (SCG) resistance, which is not met by most packaging materials or recyclates made from it. Hence, this work investigates the use of commercially available post-consumer recyclates out of high-density polyethylene from packaging applications in compounds together with high SCG-resistant virgin PE pipe material with a PE100-RC specification. Two rPEs were acquired from German producers and blended to compounds consisting of 25 m%, 50 m% and 75 m% recyclate. These compounds, together with the pure recyclates and several virgin pipe materials acting as benchmarks were tested in terms of short- and long-term mechanical performance and with other basic characterization methods. Several compounds exceeded the performance of one tested virgin PE pipe material, an injection molding PE80 grade, in several categories. The content of recyclate needed to outperform this benchmark grade was mostly dependent on the resulting melt flow rate (MFR) of the compound and thus also of the MFR of the pure recyclate. Furthermore, different levels of polypropylene contaminations within the recyclates resulted in differently contaminated compounds. This is proved to influence the SCG resistance too, as compounds of similar MFRs but with different SCG resistances were found. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Plastic Materials Recycling and Reuse)

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18 pages, 11159 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Recycling of Plastics from Cable Waste from Automotive Industry in Poland as an Approach to the Circular Economy

by Dorota Czarnecka-Komorowska, Wiktoria Kanciak, Mateusz Barczewski, Roman Barczewski, Roman Regulski, Dariusz Sędziak and Cezary Jędryczka

Polymers 2021, 13(21), 3845; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/polym13213845 - 07 Nov 2021

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4144

Abstract

This paper presents the contemporary problems of polymer waste recycling, mainly recycling cables from end-of-life vehicles. The authors developed a new material based on mixed polymer waste (ASR) modified with a ductile polymer, mainly recycled low-density polyethylene (rLDPE), to produce moisture-resistant boards with [...] Read more.

This paper presents the contemporary problems of polymer waste recycling, mainly recycling cables from end-of-life vehicles. The authors developed a new material based on mixed polymer waste (ASR) modified with a ductile polymer, mainly recycled low-density polyethylene (rLDPE), to produce moisture-resistant boards with beneficial mechanical properties. The ASR-based compositions without and with homogenization process—including physical, chemical, and shear-assisted compatibilization—were successfully applied and verified by evaluating final recycled product properties. The results showed that recycled polyethylene (rLDPE) was effective as a modifier increasing tensile modulus and flexural strength compare to an ASR mixture. It was found that the adding 5 wt % of polyethylene-grafted maleic anhydride (PE-g-MAH) as a compatibilizer to the ASR mixture significantly increases the homogenization of the components in the ASR matrix. The optimal solution for management cable waste is the manufacture of ASR composites with homogenization using an internal mixer the adding 20 wt % of rLDPE and 5 wt % of PE-g-MAH to the mixed plastics cable waste. The results obtained demonstrate that the hot-pressing with the pre-blending with rLDPE and compatibilizer of the ASR based waste provides a high gain in mechanical and usage properties, enabling the circular economy of plastics from automotive cables. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Plastic Materials Recycling and Reuse)

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15 pages, 50338 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Recycling of Nonwoven Polyethylene Terephthalate Textile into Thermal and Acoustic Insulation for More Sustainable Buildings

by David Antolinc and Kristina Eleršič Filipič

Polymers 2021, 13(18), 3090; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/polym13183090 - 14 Sep 2021

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 4610

Abstract

The construction and building sector is responsible for a large share of energy and material used during the life cycle of a building. It is therefore crucial to apply a circular economy model within the process wherever possible to minimize the impact on [...] Read more.

The construction and building sector is responsible for a large share of energy and material used during the life cycle of a building. It is therefore crucial to apply a circular economy model within the process wherever possible to minimize the impact on the environment. In this paper, the possibility of producing thermal and acoustic boards from industrial nonwoven waste textile is studied and presented. The nonwoven polyester textile obtained directly from the production line in the form of strips and bales was first shredded into smaller fractions and then in the form of pile compressed with a hot press to form compact thermal insulation boards. The first set of specimens was prepared only from waste polyester nonwoven textile, whereas the second set was treated with sodium silicate in order to check the material’s reaction to fire performance. The experimental work was conducted to define the acoustic properties, reaction to fire behavior and thermal conductivity of the produced specimens. The obtained results show that the thermal conductivity coefficient of specimens without added water glass dissolution is near to the values of conventional materials used as thermal insulation in buildings. The reaction to fire testing proved that the addition of water glass actually propagates the progressive flame over the entire product. It can be concluded that the presented thermal insulation can be used as an adequate and sustainable solution for building construction purposes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Plastic Materials Recycling and Reuse)

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