SBIR Phase I: Efficient and Effective Recycling of Post-Consumer Plastics for High-Value Applications

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will effectively and efficiently recycle post-consumer plastic materials for high value applications through an innovative and environmentally benign approach known as solid-state shear pulverization (SSSP). SSSP subjects the materials to high shear and compressive forces and avoids melting. In contrast, the current technique for recycling post-consumer plastic involves batch grinding commingled, unsorted color waste to form flake scrap material followed by melt-processing, pelletizing, and finally extruding the pelletized plastic waste to form recycled plastic products. Utilization of post-consumer plastic materials processed in this manner is severely limited due to poor mechanical performance and color distribution of the resultant product. Sorting, adding compatibilizing agents and cleaning have been used to improve the final performance of the recycled product. However, these additional steps are quite expensive, rendering the use of recycled materials impractical. For the use recycled materials to become more widespread, an innovative and cost-efficient technology is needed to yield a product that is similar in both cost and performance to virgin materials. In this project, the company will use SSSP to process unsorted, uncleaned post-consumer materials to overcome these issues and manufacture cost competitive, high-value recycled consumer products. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is the effective recycling and utilization of post-consumer plastic materials. In 2010, only 8% of the 31 million tons of plastic waste generated in the United States was recovered for recycling. A majority of the remaining spent plastic was found in municipal solid waste streams or landfills, contributing heavily to pollution and environmental contamination. The company will use a novel approach, SSSP, to recycle materials without the need for cleaning or sorting, thereby reducing processing steps and making the use of these materials more cost competitive with virgin resins. In addition to the major environmental benefits, a successful proposal will also result in significant economic implications. It has been found that processing recycled materials alone creates nine jobs for every 15,000 tons of recovered materials. Furthermore, the increase in recycling will attract new industries, subsequently leading to an increase in the number of green jobs available. Ultimately, this innovation will enhance scientific understanding by investigating a novel, environmentally benign approach for polymer processing and will lead to the development of recycled materials that will be applicable to many industries.