Chemical Engineering June 2018 - 5

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Embracing a circular economy
ast month, for the first time, U.S. plastic resin producers publicly
committed to measurable targets toward complete recovery
and recycling of plastic packaging. The American Chemistry
Council's (ACC; www.americanchemistry.com) Plastics
Division, which includes 15 of the leading resin manufacturers, announced
the following ambitious goals: 1) 100% of plastics packaging
is recyclable or recoverable by 2030; and 2) 100% of plastics
packaging is re-used, recycled or recovered by 2040.
To reach these ambitious goals, the division outlined the following six
focal areas in its announcement: 1) design of new products for greater
efficiency, recycling and reuse; 2) new technologies and systems development
for collecting, sorting, recycling and recovering materials;
3) simplification for more consumers to participate in recycling and
recovery programs; 4) expansion of the types of plastics collected and
repurposed; 5) product alignment with key end-markets; and 6) increased
awareness that used plastics are valuable resources.
L
A global issue
A study reported in July of last year in Science Advances (www.
advances.sciencemag.org/content/3/7/e1700782.full) states that as of
2015, only around 9% of plastic waste had been recycled and 79%
was accumulated in landfills or the natural environment. Plastic debris
has been found in all of the oceans, and an estimated 4 to 12 million
metric tons of this debris entered the marine environment in 2010 alone.
In its current June issue, National Geographic magazine (www.
nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2018/06/plastic-planet-wastepollution-trash-crisis)
brings awareness to the environmental impact
of plastics, and in particular to the marine environment. The striking
images in the article emphasize the findings of the report. ACC's vice
president of plastics, Steve Russell, commented on the article, saying
" Marine litter is a serious global problem, and we appreciate National
Geographic's thoughtful and compelling coverage. "
And this month, sustainability and recycling will be a focal topic at
the Polyethylene-Polypropylene Chain Global Technology & Business
Forum (www.ihsmarkit.com) in Düsseldorf, Germany. While demands
for plastics are growing, so are consumer expectations for sustainability.
According to Nick Vafiadis, vice president of plastics for IHS
Markit (the host of the forum), " The issue of sustainability is perhaps
the most critical influencer for the plastics industry as a whole, both
today and in the future. "
Supporting technologies
Developing and existing technologies are poised to support the move
toward a circular economy. For example, in April, Agilyx (www.agilyx.
com) began polystyrene recycling operations, said to be the world's
first commercial-scale closed-loop chemical recycling process. And
numerous companies, such as Vadxx (www.vadxx.com) and Greenmantra
(www.greenmantra.com), are working on
creating value from waste plastics.* The goals
announced by the ACC Plastics Division and the
worldwide efforts to move away from a linear economy
with disposal as an end result, to a circular
economy with reuse and recycling, are welcome initiatives
that can ultimately benefit us all.
■
Dorothy Lozowski, Editor in Chief
*For more, see our report on " Advanced Polymer Recycling " (Chem. Eng., March
2014; www.chemengonline.com/advanced-polymer-recycling).
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHEMENGONLINE.COM
JUNE 2018
5
http://www.americanchemistry.com http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/3/7/e1700782.full http://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2018/06/plastic-planet-waste http://www.ihsmarkit.com http://www.agilyx http://www.vadxx.com http://www.greenmantra.com http://www.accessintel.com http://www.chemengonline.com/advanced-polymer-recycling http://WWW.CHEMENGONLINE.COM
Chemical Engineering June 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Chemical Engineering June 2018
