Distributed recycling of post-consumer plastic waste in rural areas

From RepRap
Revision as of 13:14, 29 January 2019 by Hmreish (talk | contribs) (Created page with "{{MOST}} {{MOST-RepRap}} M. Kreiger, G. C. Anzalone, M. L. Mulder, A. Glover and J. M Pearce (2013). Distributed Recycling of Post-Consumer Plastic Waste in Rural Areas. MRS...")
(diff) ← Older revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)
Jump to: navigation, search
Sunhusky.png By Michigan Tech's Open Sustainability Technology Lab.

Wanted: Students to make a distributed future with solar-powered open-source RepRap 3-D printing and recyclebot recycling.
Contact Dr. Joshua Pearce or Apply here

MOST on RepRap: Projects and Publications], Methods, Lit. reviews
Twitter updates @ProfPearce

OSL.jpg


This page is part of an international project hosted by MOST to use RepRap 3-D printing to make OSAT for sustainable development. Learn more.

Research: Open source 3-D printing of OSAT RecycleBot LCA of home recyclingGreen Distributed Recycling Ethical Filament LCA of distributed manufacturingRepRap LCA Energy and CO2 Solar-powered RepRapssolar powered recyclebot Feasibility hub Mechanical testing Lessons learnedMOST RepRap Build


Make me: Want to build a MOST RepRap? - Start here! • Delta Build Overview:MOSTAthena Build OverviewMOST metal 3-D printer Humanitarian Crisis Response 3-D Printer



M. Kreiger, G. C. Anzalone, M. L. Mulder, A. Glover and J. M Pearce (2013). Distributed Recycling of Post-Consumer Plastic Waste in Rural Areas. MRS Online Proceedings Library, 1492, mrsf12-1492-g04-06 doi:10.1557/opl.2013.258. open access

Abstract

Recyclebot-process.png

Although the environmental benefits of recycling plastics are well established and most geographic locations within the U.S. offer some plastic recycling, recycling rates are often low. Low recycling rates are often observed in conventional centralized recycling plants due to the challenge of collection and transportation for high-volume low-weight polymers. The recycling rates decline further when low population density, rural and relatively isolated communities are investigated because of the distance to recycling centers makes recycling difficult and both economically and energetically inefficient. The recent development of a class of open source hardware tools (e.g. RecycleBots) able to convert post-consumer plastic waste to polymer filament for 3-D printing offer a means to increase recycling rates by enabling distributed recycling. In addition, to reducing the amount of plastic disposed of in landfills, distributed recycling may also provide low-income families a means to supplement their income with domestic production of small plastic goods. This study investigates the environmental impacts of polymer recycling. A life-cycle analysis (LCA) for centralized plastic recycling is compared to the implementation of distributed recycling in rural areas. Environmental impact of both recycling scenarios is quantified in terms of energy use per unit mass of recycled plastic. A sensitivity analysis is used to determine the environmental impacts of both systems as a function of distance to recycling centers. The results of this LCA study indicate that distributed recycling of HDPE for rural regions is energetically favorable to either using virgin resin or conventional recycling processes. This study indicates that the technical progress in solar photovoltaic devices, open-source 3-D printing and polymer filament extrusion have made distributed polymer recycling and upcycling technically viable.

Key Findings

Table 1: Energy Demand and Reduction for Various Recycling Cases

Case Energy Demand (MJ/kg HDPE) Percent Reduction (Δ%) for Distributed Recycling c
Distributed Recycling:

Insulated RecycleBot

8.74 --
Virgin Resina 79.7 89
Centralized Recyclingb – Rural: Copper Harbor (monthly) 28.4 69
Centralized Recyclingb – Rural: Copper Harbor (bi-weekly) 48.9 82
Notes: a. [26], b. Estimate based on [24], c. Percent reduction = (Central-Distributed)/Central*100


Literature Reviews

See also