Circular Materials from the Ocean Waste: Prototyping Additive Manufacturing Processes for 3D Printing with Regenerated Plastics

Marine plastic waste, such as High-Density Polyethene (HDPE) and Polyamide, poses a significant threat to marine ecosystems globally due to the incredibly large quantities found around the world. Each year, a minimum of eight million tons of plastic escapes into the oceans, contributing to a staggering 150 million tons of plastic waste currently present in the marine environment . If no substantial measures are taken, it is estimated that by 2050, the weight of plastic in the oceans may surpass that of fish, highlighting the critical need for intervention . Fishing lines and mooring cables are the largest precursors for the discarded materials in the ocean and are produced by fishing and maritime activities. These types of plastics put marine life and the overall ecosystem in danger. This research paper focuses on developing circular materials using regenerated HDPE and polyamide, with a specific focus on customizing them for 3D printing processes. The research paper delves deep into the circular process that these plastics undergo at the end of their life cycle, up to the stage of manufacturing to reinvent these materials back into communities as regenerated materials. This paper outlines the processing of waste, material engineering, rapid prototyping, and digital fabrication. The primary goal is to address the urgent issue of marine plastic pollution by devising sustainable and innovative methods to effectively repurpose these materials.