A new method for separation & full recovery of multilayered packaging waste to create high value materials

自20世纪70年代以来，食品制造业一直在生产多层包装。多层包装提供了一种聚合物单独无法提供的特性组合（例如水分、氧气、光屏障、刚度、透明度、光泽度等）;通常由PET/PP/PE/PA层组成。每年超过四千万吨全球生产的多层塑料约为100万吨，其中欧盟贡献了960万吨，预计增长约7%。然而，由于实现将多层包装有效分离成其构成固体聚合物组分的极端困难，目前没有用于聚合物级分的固体分离和回收的技术或操作加工设备。因此，多层柔性塑料废物目前作为单一废物流收集并通过填埋场（成本为100英镑/吨）或焚烧（约60英镑/吨）进行处理;产生全球经济损失24 - 40亿英镑。处理如此大量的塑料也会产生巨大的环境问题，迫切需要开发有效的分离技术。我们的目标是开发一种新的回收方法来分离多层塑料包装废物。这项技术的成功开发将创造回收这种材料的商业机会，产生新的收入，同时减少废物，垃圾填埋场，能源和减少每年的二氧化碳排放。我们的新工艺不仅将确保通过回收利用这些塑料作为原材料的可持续供应，还将为参与的中小企业提供获得持续收入的机会。

The food manufacturing sector has been producing multi-layered packaging since the 1970s. Multi-layered packaging offers a combination of properties that one polymer alone cannot provide (e.g. moisture, oxygen, light barrier, stiffness, clarity, gloss etc); typically comprised of layers of PET/PP/PE/PA. Over 40m tonnes p.a. of multilayered plastics are produced globally, of which the EU contributes 9.6m tonnes, with an expected growth of ~7%. However, due to the extreme difficulties in achieving effective separation of the multi-layered packaging into its constituent solid polymer components, there are no current technologies or operational processing plants for solid separation & recovery of the polymer fractions. As a consequence, multi-layered, flexible plastic waste is currently collected as a single waste stream & disposed of through landfill (at costs of £100/t), or incinerated (~£60/t); generating global economic losses of £2.4-4 billion. Disposal of such large volumes of plastic also generates great environmental concern, with an urgent need to develop effective separation technology. Our objective is to develop a novel recycling method to separate multilayered plastic packaging waste. Successful development of this technology will create the business opportunity to recycle this material, generating new revenues while reducing waste, landfill, energy & reducing annual CO2 emissions. Our novel process will not only ensure the sustainable supply of these plastics as raw materials via recycling but will also provide participating SMEs with the opportunity to derive an ongoing income.