Chemical Recycling Pathways for Agricultural Plastics - A Comparative Technology Assessment

Tertiary (chemical) recycling is the process of breaking down plastic polymers into their individual monomers, which are then reconstructed to create new polymers to produce fresh plastic goods. Tertiary recycling includes methods such as cracking and gasification. Chemical recycling techniques, such as catalytic cracking, pyrolysis, microwave-assisted pyrolysis (MAP), plasma pyrolysis, may effectively extract polymers from mixed rubbish and municipal solid waste. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of four main types of plastics recycling and eight chemical recycling systems, with a specific focus on cracking and gasification methods. The selection of technologies was based on a thorough examination of existing literature, and their evaluation was conducted by considering significant performance characteristics, peer-reviewed scientific publications, information supplied by technology developers, and expert interviews. The primary objective of the research is to conduct a comparative analysis of technologies that use publicly accessible data. The research only examines tertiary (chemical) recycling techniques, excluding other approaches like bio recycling. The findings underscore the potential of chemical recycling to provide a self-sustaining framework for plastics and examine the challenges and benefits linked to different recycling methods.