Recycling and Waste news and discussions

[wjfox]

[caltrek]

This is a good idea for a thread. In a local paper, there was also a story about plastic recycling. Turns out that there are actually "seven types of plastic" that "are technically recyclable, whether they are recycled depends on market demand for the plastic and the economic feasibility of the recycling process." In our local area, only the PET (disposable food and beverage containers), HDPE (milk jugs, detergent containers, shampoo bottles, juice cartons, rope, plastic chairs, and toys) and PP (yogurt containers, liner in cereal boxes, disposable plates, cups and utensils) types of plastic are recycled. PVC (music vinyls, PVC pipe, window frames, flooring , and shrink wrap) LDPE (plastic shopping bags, newspaper bags, food wrapping, and packaging foam) and Styrofoam are not recycled but typically still end up in the landfill. So the challenge for the latter is to either stop using them or create a market for the recycling of such items.

Another problem is that much of the plastic that consumers and users might think is recyclable is actually too dirty for such a use. People dump such plastic into recycling bins not realizing that such items will simply be diverted from the plastic recycling waste stream into the local landfill.

Industry folks also have an interesting term: "wishcycling." "Consumers think they're doing the right thing. They see something like a coat hanger and think, "Oh, this is plastic, I'm not putting that in my trash.' but that's not a recyclable product." At least not recyclable in our area. I myself am constantly getting the different types of plastic confused with each other.

As is often the case, what is technologically feasible may not matter if the economics cannot be made to work. Policies such as additional taxes or outright banning may help. In California, a problem has been the seemingly arbitrary nature of banning. "The plastic legislation we are seeing are these one-off bans. People get tired of it, they feel like we're trying to take things away from them because first we ban this then we ban that. The ban language is problematic." Economics can also vary from region to region. Some regions do find relatively local markets for plastics that are not recycled in other regions. So, this further confuses the situation for consumers and for communicating this issue to consumers.

[wjfox]

Call for global treaty to end production of ‘virgin’ plastic by 2040

Thu 1 Jul 2021 19.00 BST

A binding global treaty is needed to phase out the production of “virgin” or new plastic by 2040, scientists have said.

The solution to the blight of plastic pollution in the oceans and on land would be a worldwide agreement on limits and controls, they say in a special report in the journal Science.

[...]

The scandals of plastic waste exports to developing countries were one example of the failure of mechanical recycling as an answer to the plastic pollution problem, said Kakadellis and Rosetto.

“Technology alone will not and cannot solve the plastic pollution crisis,” said the authors. “No silver-bullet solution exists for the multifaceted nature of plastic pollution. The answer instead lies in a blend of approaches … from a strong regulatory framework and the investment in effective waste collection and management infrastructure to the development of polymer chemistries, life-cycle design, and consumer behaviour.”

https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... ic-by-2040

[caltrek]

Cow Stomach Enzymes Found to Break Down Common Plastics
by Jason Sandefur
July 1, 2021

https://www.courthousenews.com/cow-stom ... -plastics/

Introduction:

(CN) — Plastics touch every aspect of our modern lives, containing and comprising many of the products we depend on every day. Because they’re hard to break down, plastics also poison the planet we depend on for life.

Hoping to solve this dilemma, researchers in Austria have discovered that bacteria from a cow’s stomach can digest certain types of plastics — a breakthrough that could save the planet by reducing plastic waste.

The bacteria in question is found in a cow’s rumen, one of four compartments in its stomach. Since a cow’s diet contains natural plant polyesters, researchers suspected the bacteria a cow uses to break down this diet might have wider uses.

“We suspected that some biological activities could also be used for polyester hydrolysis,” said Dr. Doris Ribitsch of the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna.

Hydrolysis is a type of chemical reaction that causes decomposition. Because microorganisms in this natural process already break down similar materials, scientists suspected they might be able to break down plastics as well.

One wonders whether the digesting of plastic by cows affects the quality of their milk?

[raklian]

Call for global treaty to end production of ‘virgin’ plastic by 2040

That's wayyyy too late.

[caltrek]

EPA Might Finally Regulate the Plastic Industry’s Favorite Kind of ‘Recycling’
by Joseph Winters
October 5, 2021

https://grist.org/regulation/epa-might- ... recycling/

Introduction:

(Grist) One of the fossil fuel and plastic industries’ favorite “solutions” to the plastic pollution crisis may finally be coming under greater scrutiny from the federal government.

Last month, the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, formally announced it was considering tighter regulations for pyrolysis and gasification — controversial processes that are associated with “chemical recycling.” Industry advocates have named these processes as key steps toward building a circular economy — one that minimizes waste — but environmental groups have called them an “industry shell game” meant to keep single-use plastics in production.

The problem, according to Denise Patel, regional coordinator for the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives, or GAIA, is that most of what the industry calls “chemical recycling” isn’t recycling at all. Rather than turning used plastic into new plastic products, chemical recycling usually involves melting plastic into oil and gas to be burned — the process is sometimes called “plastic to fuel.” Not only does chemical recycling not contribute to a circular economy, Patel said, but it also releases greenhouse gases that exacerbate climate change and hazardous chemicals that harm frontline communities.

“This technology hasn’t been sufficiently regulated by the EPA,” Patel said, adding that oversight is urgently needed to protect public health and the environment.

At present, the EPA doesn’t have a consistent definition for chemical recycling or its constituent processes, let alone a comprehensive framework for regulating it at the national level. The EPA’s Clean Air Act guidelines for solid waste incineration set standards for some types of pyrolysis — a process that applies high heat to waste under deoxygenated conditions to produce oil, gas, and char — but not others.

[caltrek]

Natural Protein Offers Greener Way to Extract Rare Earth Elements
by Gail McCormick
October 11, 2021

https://www.futurity.org/rare-earth-ele ... n-2640262/

Introduction:

(Futurity) A new method improves the extraction and separation of rare earth elements—a group of 17 elements critical for technologies such as smartphones and electric car batteries—from unconventional sources.

Researchers have demonstrated how a protein isolated from bacteria can provide a more environmentally friendly way to extract these metals and to separate them from other metals and from each other.

The method could eventually be scaled up to help develop a domestic supply of rare earth metals from industrial waste and electronics due to be recycled.

"In order to meet the increasing demand for rare earth elements for use in emerging clean energy technologies, we need to address several challenges in the supply chain,” says Joseph Cotruvo Jr., assistant professor and professor of chemistry at Penn State, a member of Penn State’s Center for Critical Minerals, and co-corresponding author of the study in ACS Central Science.

“This includes improving the efficiency and alleviating the environmental burden of the extraction and separation processes for these metals. In this study, we demonstrate a promising new method using a natural protein that could be scaled up to extract and separate rare earth elements from low-grade sources, including industrial wastes.”

[caltrek]

Mandatory Composting Coming to California in January Will Change How We Dispose Food
by Melanie Woodrow
December 10, 2021

https://abc7news.com/new-composting-law ... /11317637/

Introduction:

(ABC News Watch) SAN FRANCISCO, CA (KGO) -- Starting January, there's no more tossing food scraps like banana peels or veggies in the trash. Californians will instead be required to put excess food in waste bins. Cities and counties will then turn the waste into compost, creating an energy source.

"This is the biggest change to our trash since we started recycling in the 1980s," said Rachel Wagoner, the Director of CalRecycle.
Wagoner says it's all about removing food waste from landfills which can damage the atmosphere as it decays.

"So every time we put that banana peel in our organic waste and it is turned into compost or a biogas and gets its next life, we are fighting climate change," said Wagoner.

She says it is the single, fastest thing every Californian can do on their end.

[caltrek]

This article is a little dated, but I doubt that it was reported upon earlier in this forum.

Recycled Art! ITI Berhampur Students Create India's Tallest Robot from E-Waste
by Devyani Madaik
November 2, 2021

https://thelogicalindian.com/sustainabi ... aste-31681

Introduction:

(The Logical Indian) The students of Industrial Training Institute of Berhampur, Odisha, have given a new definition to electronic waste management by creating a robot 'ROBO' out of waste. It is considered India's tallest e-waste sculpture, with a height of 30 feet and weighing 3 tonnes.

They used discarded electronic toys, PCB, printers, CD players, VCRs, cartridges, RAM, keyboards, mice, etc., they had collected from across the Berhampur city, Hindustan Times reported.

The students are trainees from the electrician, electronics, and painter department of the institute. The e-waste for the robot was collected from Berhampur city.

Principal Dr Rajat Kumar Panigrahy said the motive behind this innovation was to urge people to reconnect with nature, understand the scientific management of e-waste, and utilise it correctly. The country generates large quantities of electronic waste, which further pollutes air and water.

Many electronics can be repaired and sold as refurbished goods; some can be reused after melting and returning to their raw form. But most of the goods mentioned above outlast their usefulness and become e-waste. They cannot even be disposed of in landfills, as they contain harmful components. Hence, it is important to keep them from the trash.

[caltrek]

Use of Air-Fluidized Aggregates of Black Soldier Fly Larvae to Recycle Food Waste
December 2, 2021

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10 ... 34447/full

Introduction:

(Frontiers in Physics) Every year, humans waste over one billion tons of food, a third of all food production. Such excessive food waste also creates management problems. When left unattended in traditional landfills, rotting food becomes an environmental hazard that can spread diseases and release greenhouse gases. One solution to this issue involves feeding the food waste to insects, which subsequently can be rendered into livestock feed or biofuel. Black soldier fly larvae (Hermetia illucens) have been used extensively for this process because they reduce the house fly population and have high nutritional value. However, raising black soldier fly larvae in denser aggregations than those found in nature creates a number of new challenges, such as the distribution of food, the removal of uneaten food, and the removal of solid and liquid waste produced by the larvae. Furthermore, larval metabolic heat dissipates slowly in dense aggregations, causing them to rise to temperatures lethal to larvae. As a result, it is recommended to grow larvae at area densities lower than five larvae per square centimeter, or equivalently, at heights lower than approximately three times the larval width. This factor limits efficient space utilization in the industry. To feed larvae in denser aggregations, it has been proposed to provide aeration during feeding.

https://www.futurity.org/black-soldier- ... 2677602-2/

Conclusion from a Futurity article on the same subject:

(Futurity) ...important is the potential of these protein-rich insects to reduce the carbon effects of feeding animals. Global food production contributes more than 17 billion metric tons of human-made greenhouse gas emissions every year, according to a study published in September in Nature Food. Animal-based foods produce more than twice the emissions of plant-based food, the study found.

“There’s no sustainable protein source for the animals that we eat,” notes (Hungtang) Ko, (a PhD student in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology). “The black soldier fly larvae could play a role in reducing the environmental impact of feeding these animals.”

[wjfox]

[caltrek]

Experts Say Clean Energy Tech Needs to be Designed for Recycling
by Maddie Stone
January 14, 2022

https://www.theverge.com/22882287/clean ... -recycling

Introduction:

(The Verge) Companies like Apple and Samsung aren’t the only ones making high-tech devices that are hard to take apart and recycle. So are the manufacturers of critical clean energy technologies like solar panels, wind turbines, and electric vehicle (EV) batteries — and unlike the consumer tech industry, which is slowly starting to reverse some of its unsustainable design practices, there isn’t much being done about it.

Batteries, solar panels, and wind turbines are all essential tools for combating climate change. However, these technologies take considerable energy and resources to make, and the best way to ensure we can keep making more of them sustainably is to recycle those resources at end of life. But today, clean energy recycling is limited by design choices that hinder disassembly, including the widespread use of ultra-strong adhesives. That could change, experts say, if the companies manufacturing supersized batteries for EVs and rare earth magnets for wind turbines shifted toward new adhesives that can be “de-bonded” using light, heat, magnetic fields, and more, or toward glue-free designs.

“Design for recycling hasn’t really come to that market yet,” says Andy Abbott, a professor of chemistry at the University of Leicester who recently co-authored a review paper on de-bondable adhesives and their potential use in clean energy.

Instead, Abbott says, manufacturers tend to “overengineer” their products for safety and durability. Take EV batteries, which are composed of anywhere from dozens to thousands of individual, hermetically-sealed cells glued together inside modules and packs. While the heavy use of adhesives helps ensure the batteries don’t fall apart on the road, it can make them incredibly difficult to take apart in order to repurpose individual cells or recycle critical metals like lithium, cobalt, and nickel.

“At the moment, because everything is bonded together, lots of batteries end up getting shredded,” study co-author Gavin Harper, an EV battery recycling expert at the University of Birmingham in the UK, tells The Verge. “The material is mixed together, which makes subsequent steps in the recycling process more complicated.”

[caltrek]

The Climate Solution in California’s Compost and Crops
by Justine Calma
January 26, 2022

https://www.theverge.com/2022/1/26/2290 ... griculture

Extract:

(The Verge) Scaling up composting, tree-planting, and other sustainable agricultural practices in California could trap about a quarter of the state’s annual carbon dioxide emissions by 2030, according to a new report. These strategies for drawing down greenhouse gases are cheaper and easier to ramp up than technological alternatives, like devices that suck planet-heating CO2 out of the air, and should play a key role in the state’s efforts to address climate change, the report authors argue.
...
The report proposes California allot $29 billion for natural methods of carbon sequestration through 2030. Much of that money would go towards building up facilities for producing and distributing compost, hiring and training staff to manage trees, working with farmers to implement sustainable practices, and giving incentives to farmers to switch to composting.

There are a few different ways composting can make a dent in carbon pollution. Compost is made from food or agricultural waste that might otherwise release greenhouse gases when sent to landfills. Instead, it’s used to nourish crops and grasses for livestock to graze. More productive croplands and pasture and healthier soils, in turn, are better at drawing down and sequestering CO2. Starting this year, California residents and businesses will be required to separate out their food and green waste from other garbage so that it can be composted.

The report also highlights the benefits of agroforestry, the practice of planting trees among crops and pastures. On top of taking in CO2 themselves, these trees can prevent erosion that causes soils to lose carbon. Planting a diversity of crops also improves soil health.
...
…obstacles are significant, says Stephen Hart, a professor of life and environmental sciences at the University of California Merced who was not involved in the analysis. Hart believes the report’s authors overestimated how quickly the state can implement such strategies and worries about whether they can be sustained over time. “The coordination of thousands of farmers, rangeland managers, etc. to meet their suggested targets would like[ly] take an organizational effort unmatched in the State’s history,” he writes in an email to The Verge. He also points out that some farmers concerned about crop yield may not want to switch from high-nitrogen synthetic fertilizers to compost, and worries about the emissions that might come with transporting compost.

[caltrek]

New Enzyme Discovery is Another Leap Towards Beating Plastic Waste
March 21, 2022

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/946863

Introduction:

(EurekAlert) Scientists who helped to pioneer the use of enzymes to eat plastic have taken an important next step in developing nature-based solutions to the global plastics crisis.

They have characterised an enzyme that has the remarkable capacity to help break down terephthalate (TPA), one of the chemical building blocks of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic, which is used to make single-use drinks bottles, clothing and carpets.

The research, which is published in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), was co-led by Professor Jen DuBois, Montana State University, and Professor John McGeehan from the University of Portsmouth, who in 2018 led the international team that engineered a natural enzyme that could break down PET plastic. The enzymes (PETase and MHETase) break the PET polymer into the chemical building blocks ethylene glycol (EG) and TPA. This new research describes the next steps, specifically for managing TPA.

Professor DuBois said: “While EG is a chemical with many uses – it’s part of the antifreeze you put into your car, for example – TPA does not have many uses outside of PET, nor is it something that most bacteria can even digest. However, the Portsmouth team revealed that an enzyme from PET-consuming bacteria recognises TPA like a hand in a glove. Our group at MSU then demonstrated that this enzyme, called TPADO, breaks down TPA and pretty much only TPA, with amazing efficiency.”

With more than 400 million tons of plastic waste produced each year, the overwhelming majority of which ends up in landfills, it is hoped this work will open the door to improve bacterial enzymes, such as TPADO. This will help tackle the challenge of plastic pollution and develop biological systems that can convert waste plastic into valuable products.

[Ken_J]

I feel increasingly like the right solution for plastic waste is to switch to plastic formulas that can be made by pulling co2 out of the air, and shredding and sequestration in pockets in the ground, perhaps even empty oil deposits.

I mean if you animals won't recycle the stuff, refuse to use it in thermal depolymerization to make fuels and other hydrocarbon materials, and won't incincerate it for power plants. put plastic back into the ground to pull the carbon out of circulation. Let it replace the oil we have taken out.

[caltrek]

Breaking Down Plastic into Its Constituent Parts
March 24, 2022

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/947566

Introduction:

(EurekAlert) The chemical industry has a long tradition of producing polymers. This involves turning small molecular building blocks into long chains of molecules that bond together. Polymers are the basis of all kinds of everyday plastics, such as PET and polyurethane.

However, while the formation of polymers is well established and well researched, scientists have given little attention to how polymer chains are broken down (a process called depolymerisation) to recover their individual building blocks – monomers. One reason for this is that breaking down polymers is a complex process. Whether a polymer can be broken back down at all into its constituent parts depends on which of the different polymer manufacturing processes were used. Another reason is that the depolymerisation processes used to date require a lot of energy, which has made them economically unviable. Added to this is the fact that recycled polymers are usually only used in the manufacture of low-value products.

Breaking down polymers is the goal

Athina Anastasaki, Professor of Polymeric Materials at ETH Zurich, wants to change this. She has set herself the goal of producing polymers that can be easily broken down into their building blocks so that they can be fully recycled.

The materials scientist has been able to take a first important step in this direction: A study by her group has just been published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society [https://doi.org/...]. In it, Anastasaki and her colleagues show that they can break down certain polymers into their basic building blocks – monomers – and recycle them for use in materials for further applications.

The polymers broken down are polymethacrylates (e.g. Plexi Glass) that were produced using a specific polymerisation technique called reversible addition-fragmentation chain-transfer polymerisation – otherwise known as RAFT. This relatively new method, which is now also attracting the interest of industry, produces polymer chains of uniform length.

[wjfox]

[weatheriscool]

The global 'plastic flood' reaches the Arctic
https://phys.org/news/2022-04-global-pl ... rctic.html
by Alfred Wegener Institute

Even the High North can't escape the global threat of plastic pollution. An international review study just released by the Alfred Wegener Institute shows the flood of plastic has reached all spheres of the Arctic. Large quantities of plastic—transported by rivers, the air and shipping–can now be found in the Arctic Ocean. High concentrations of microplastic can be found in the water, on the seafloor, remote beaches, in rivers, and even in ice and snow. The plastic is not only a burden for ecosystems; it could also worsen climate change. The study was just released in the journal Nature Reviews Earth & Environment.

The numbers speak for themselves. Today, between 19 and 23 million metric tons of plastic litter per year end up in the waters of the world—that's two truckloads per minute. Since plastic is also very stable, it accumulates in the oceans, where it gradually breaks down into ever smaller pieces—from macro- to micro- and nanoplastic and can even enter the human bloodstream. And the flood of debris is bound to get worse: global plastic production is expected to double by 2045.

The consequences are serious. Today, virtually all marine organisms investigated—from plankton to sperm whales—come into contact with plastic debris and microplastic. And this applies to all areas of the world's oceans—from tropical beaches to the deepest oceanic trenches. As the study published by the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) now shows, the High North is no exception.

"The Arctic is still assumed to be a largely untouched wilderness," says AWI expert Dr. Melanie Bergmann. "In our review, which we jointly conducted with colleagues from Norway, Canada and the Netherlands, we show that this perception no longer reflects the reality. Our northernmost ecosystems are already particularly hard hit by climate change. This is now exacerbated by plastic pollution. And our own research has shown that the pollution continues to worsen."

[caltrek]

Scientists at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Develop a Recyclable Pollen-based Paper for Repeated Printing and ‘Unprinting’
April 5, 2022

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/948740

Introduction:

(EurekAlert) Scientists at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have developed a pollen-based ‘paper’ that, after being printed on, can be ‘erased’ and reused multiple times without any damage to the paper.

In a research paper published online in Advanced Materials on 5 April, the NTU Singapore scientists demonstrated how high-resolution colour images could be printed on the non-allergenic pollen paper with a laser printer, and then ‘unprinted’ – by completely removing the toner without damaging the paper – with an alkaline solution. They demonstrated that this process could be repeated up to at least eight times.

This innovative, printer-ready pollen paper could become an eco-friendly alternative to conventional paper, which is made via a multi-step process with a significant negative environmental impact, said the NTU team led by Professors Subra Suresh and Cho Nam-Joon.

It could also help to reduce the carbon emissions and energy usage associated with conventional paper recycling, which involves repulping, de-toning (removal of printer toner) and reconstruction.

[caltrek]

Scientists at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Develop New Method to Convert Plastic Trash into Clean Hydrogen Fuel
April 6, 2022

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/948898

Introduction:

(EurekAlert) Scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have developed a new method for plastic waste to be converted into hydrogen based on pyrolysis, a high temperature chemical process.

Unlike PET plastic bottles which can be recycled easily, plastic litter containing contaminated food packaging, styrofoam and plastic bags, is challenging to recycle. They are currently incinerated or buried in landfills, leading to both water and ground pollution.

Using pyrolysis, plastic litter can then be converted into two main products, hydrogen and a form of solid carbon, called carbon nanotubes. Hydrogen is useful for generating electricity and powering fuel cells like those found in electric vehicles, with clean water as its only by-product.

To further refine the new conversion method and to assess its commercial feasibility, the research team is test-bedding it on the NTU Smart Campus to treat local plastic waste, in partnership with Bluefield Renewable Energy, a local environmental firm that specialises in mobile waste to resources technologies

The multimillion-dollar research joint project, supported by the Industry Alignment Fund-Industry Collaboration Projects (IAF-ICP) administered by Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), aims to develop feasible solutions to economically scale up the conversion of waste plastics to hydrogen over the next three years.