Advances and approaches for chemical recycling of plastic waste

the majority of high market-share plastics are obtained from the use of non-renewable and ecologically devastating and processing techniques. The imperative to access new technologies for recycling and plastics is clear given their unsustainable origins and dogged environmental persistence in the and 9 The current review aims to highlight contemporary academic efforts to develop new methods for recycling some of the most abundantly-produced plastics. Specifically, efforts chemically ABSTRACT The global production and consumption of plastics has increased at an alarming rate over the last few decades. The accumulation of pervasive and persistent waste plastic has concomitantly increased in landfills and the environment. The societal, ecological and economic problems of plastic waste/pollution demand immediate and decisive action. In 2015, only 9% of plastic waste was successfully recycled in the United States. The major current recycling processes focus on the mechanical recycling of plastic waste, however even this process is limited by the sorting/pretreatment of plastic waste and degradation of plastics during the process. An alternative to mechanical processes is chemical recycling of plastic waste. Efficient chemical recycling would allow for the production of feedstocks for various uses including fuels and chemical feedstocks to replace petrochemicals. This review focuses on the most recent advances for the chemical recycling of three major polymers found in plastic waste: poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), polyethylene (PE), and polypropylene (PP). Commercial processes for recycling hydrolysable polymers like polyesters or polyamides, polyolefins, or mixed waste streams are also discussed. ABSTRACT Advances and Approaches The global production and consumption of plastics has drastic societal and environmental ramifications. Chemical recycling of plastic waste is an alternative to traditional recycling methods that focuses on converting waste plastic into value-added chemicals for the synthesis of fuels, polymers, and other commodity chemicals. This review focuses on the most recent advances (2014–2019) in chemical recycling of some of the most widely produced plastics. A review with 113 references. This review covers the most common current academic and industrial effots to recycle common plastics and mixed waste.