Version 1
: Received: 7 October 2023 / Approved: 8 October 2023 / Online: 8 October 2023 (05:28:37 CEST)
How to cite:
Kim, H.J. Current Advances and Challenges in Chemical Recycling of Polymeric Materials. Preprints2023, 2023100427. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202310.0427.v1
Kim, H.J. Current Advances and Challenges in Chemical Recycling of Polymeric Materials. Preprints 2023, 2023100427. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202310.0427.v1
Kim, H.J. Current Advances and Challenges in Chemical Recycling of Polymeric Materials. Preprints2023, 2023100427. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202310.0427.v1
APA Style
Kim, H.J. (2023). Current Advances and Challenges in Chemical Recycling of Polymeric Materials. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202310.0427.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Kim, H.J. 2023 "Current Advances and Challenges in Chemical Recycling of Polymeric Materials" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202310.0427.v1
Abstract
Ranging from traditional food packaging, clothing, and furniture to the current small and large electronic devices and automobiles, plastics serve to fulfill diverse demands in our daily lives. However, the global plastic waste generation is dramatically escalating, currently standing at approximately 150 million metric tonnes annually. While some of regenerated plastics recycled by mechanical methods can be used as their parent plastics, cost and energy savings are limited by multiple preliminary processes such as plastic sorting, shredding, washing, and drying. Moreover, the continuous mechanical recycling process degrades the physical properties of the materials. In this context, chemical recycling is emerging as a promising alternative method due to its high efficiency, simple preliminary steps, reducing reliance on fossil resources, and conversion of plastic waste into value-added chemicals. This review provides a state-of-the-art overview of contemporary chemical recycling of polymeric materials via i) depolymerization: “polymers to small valuable molecules” and ii) closed-loop cycles: “polymers to monomers, and/or to polymers”, by encompassing both traditional/advanced depolymerization chemistries and the remaining challenges. These recycling approaches are contextualized within the present industrial technologies, key design principles, and specific recycling case studies related to distinct polymeric materials.
Keywords
Recycling; Plastic wastes; Chemical recycling; Depolymerization; Closed-loop recycling
Subject
Chemistry and Materials Science, Chemical Engineering
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
