Researchers found success with partial depolymerization of virgin PET and PET bottles recovered from the sea. | Rich Carey/Shutterstock
A chemical recycling research project concluded that a partial depolymerization technique can break down scrap PET in a relatively short time and under mild conditions with little energy use.
A new effort from industry group The Recycling Partnership aims to assess and change behavior. | Air Images/Shutterstock
Recycling doesn’t work unless people can put material into the stream, so The Recycling Partnership is expanding its efforts to both understand and change consumer behavior at the bin.
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Research from the Association of Plastic Recyclers shows a 28% recycling rate for PET and HDPE bottles in 2020. | Frank Fiedler/Shutterstock
The Association of Plastic Recyclers released a report noting 21% of HDPE, PET and PP packaging is recycled in the U.S.
Nearly 40% of surveyed CFOs and CEOs said that sustainability initiatives would be the first cut in tight financial times. | Jirapong Manustrong/Shutterstock
A survey of CEOs and chief financial officers suggested that when businesses are considering cuts amid current economic headwinds, sustainability initiatives are among the first to go.
Researchers found that plastics can offer lower greenhouse gas emissions than substitutes in a number of use cases. | VanderWolf/Shutterstock
The severe impact of plastic ocean pollution has long been recognized, but research firm McKinsey wants to inject some of plastic’s climate benefits into the collective materials usage discussion.
Using 2014 data from the U.S. EPA, researchers examined GHG benefits of recycling. | Lawrence Glass/Shutterstock
A new life cycle assessment quantifies the impacts of different curbside collection scenarios, concluding that a typical single-stream recycling program reduces overall emissions by almost 40% when compared with simply landfilling the material.
New developments in film and resin technology advance efficiency and circularity goals. | Alex Traksel/Shutterstock
Several companies have released new products that are pushing plastics recycling forward, including PCR-specific additives and 83% recycled content films. Here’s a roundup of innovation news. Continue Reading
An OECD report anticipates marine debris will increase significantly in volume over the next several decades. | Santiparp Wattanaporn/Shutterstock
Globally, discarded plastic levels could nearly triple by 2060, with about half of the plastic ending up in landfill and less than a fifth recycled, an OECD report projected.
Researchers at Rice University turned milled-together bumpers, gaskets, carpets, mats, seating and door casings from Ford F-150 pickup trucks into graphene. | mynewturtle/Shutterstock
An experiment by Rice University and Ford turned mixed plastic from old vehicles into graphene, which was then used in a polyurethane foam for new vehicles.
The bipartisan infrastructure bill passed last year provides about $350 million to the U.S. EPA over several years to fund recycling infrastructure and education grants. | RozenskiP/Shutterstock
The U.S. EPA is working to build several grant programs from the ground up thanks to an influx of money from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and it is reaching out to stakeholders to make sure the programs will meet industry needs.