Can All Types of Plastic be recycled? Let’s find out further about the types of plastic and their possibility to get recycled.
Can All Types of Plastic be recycled? Well, almost all kinds of plastic can be recycled principally. However, the practice of plastic recycling is completely different because some barriers can undermine the plastic recycling process. People want to recycle plastics because they want to be more environmental-friendly. However, the process of recycling some plastic types does not always make technical, economic, or environmental sense to do so.
Why cannot you recycle some types of plastic? In many cases, the items can have multiple types of plastic. It comes in different layers that are hard to separate. As a result, recycling those types of plastic items will be difficult and costly. Plastics are used a lot for food packaging. Unfortunately, when the plastic part is contaminated by food and other substances, the resin will not be clean enough to be reused.
It will spend millions of dollars on building and operating recycling facilities. That is why to make it profitable, the company will need to treat a huge amount of plastic every day. If there are only small quantities of plastics recycled, the process will be not economical and beneficial, at all. The efficiency will be low while the costs are high.
Can All Types of Plastic be recycled? If you have this kind of question, you might have a big concern about the environment. After knowing the facts about plastic recycling, you might feel a little bit disappointed. Nevertheless, you can still find plastic recycling happening. This process has produced various great products. You can still buy products with plastic packaging without feeling discouraged because the plastic waste will be post-consumer recycled material after the right process.
What kinds of plastic can be recycled? This can be the next question you want to ask after asking Can All Types of Plastic be recycled? You can find various kinds of plastic products or packaging that can be recycled because they are made from these types of plastic.
The very first type of plastic material that can be recycled is PET. It is the most widely recycled plastic all over the world, after all. This type of plastic can be recycled easily, but the struggle can still be found in some countries to reach decent recycling rates. Does it mean that PET bottles can also be recycled? Yes, PET bottles can be recycled into the same form. PET bottles can be recycled to make new beverage bottles. Besides being recycled, PET is also used innovatively, such as for construction materials in third-world countries.
The next type of plastic that can be recycled is HDPE. Most recycling centers all over the world will accept this type of plastic. It is also included in the easiest plastic polymers to recycle. The HDPE products will be collected by recycling companies before being sent to large facilities for a further process. HDPE can be transparent or colored, just like PET plastic type. The transparent HDPE can be recycled and used for non-food application bottles, such as for film packaging, household cleaners, motor oil, and detergent. Meanwhile, the colored one can be recycled and used for non-food application bottles, lawn products, and pipes. HDPE is often downcycled into various durable plastic products, such as benches, tables, lumber, and roadside curbs.
The last type of plastic that can be recycled is called PP or polypropylene. PP is used a lot for plastic packaging materials. Nevertheless, it is only recycled in a small amount. Well, most PP will be sent to the landfill. It will take about 20-30 years for this type of plastic to degrade and completely decompose. People choose not to recycle this plastic material because the process is difficult and expensive.
Of course, you also need to know the types of plastic that cannot be recycled. PVC or polyvinyl chloride is the first type of plastic that is not recyclable in normal collections.
Next, there is also LDPE or low-density polyethylene. This type of plastic is used for making the infamous plastic bags provided by many retailers, including grocery stores. It can be recycled technically, but it will not be recycled because it often tangles in recycling machinery. It can endanger the whole process of plastic recycling. It is also very cheap with low quality which makes recycling not profitable enough. That is why in many areas, LDPE will not be accepted in curbside recycling bins. It might be difficult to recycle LDPE, but once it is recycled, it can be made into packaging films and bin liners.
Last but not least, polystyrene and other plastic types are never recycled. After getting the answer Can All Types of Plastic be recycled? question, now you know different types of plastic. No matter what kind of plastic you need, Castalia International Pte. Ltd can be the best supplier for you.
