There are many types of plastic recycling, and PET plastic is more common than plastic foam. As the most common plastic, this plastic is as worthy of recycling as plastic foam. The technology for recycling PET plastic can be as mature as recycling foam, achieving high efficiency and high quality. There are various recycling methods. GOLDEN, COLORADO — With more than 480 billion plastic bottles produced each year and people doing their best to recycle them all the time, what if plastic could be dissolved and remade into new ones?
It sounds like some cool science experiment, but it’s already being carried out at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado. “We’re trying to keep these plastics from ending up in landfills,” said NREL researcher Elizabeth Bell. “We can recycle them in an environmentally friendly way.” In her lab, Bell is making it possible to recycle plastics by using enzymes to degrade them, especially the PET used in plastic bottles.
The researchers are working to scale up this process and better understand which enzymes break down which plastics. Within the next decade, the pilot plant will be operational and use enzymes to break down tons of plastic, Bell said. It is said that this new type of recycling method has a higher conversion rate of energy, but the technology has not yet reached a mature standard to support large-scale use. At present, mechanical recycling method is still the most common recycling method. Recycling with PET recycling machine has become a trend.
The main function of the GREENMAX PET recycling machine is to squeeze out the remaining liquid in the PET bottle. The remaining liquid is a major problem in the recycling process. If it is not handled properly, there will be no way to recycle it later. Secondly, another function of the PET recycling machine is to flatten the PET bottle and reduce a part of the storage space. Put the PET bottle into the feeding bin of the PET recycling machine, and then squeeze it, and some residual liquid will flow into the tray below. The well-known brand L’Oreal is a partner of GREENMAX, and has started to use the GREENMAX machine for recycling a long time ago.
Bottles recycled by PET recycling machine can be crushed, washed, and then these clean pieces can be made into PET particles and various plastic products, even food-grade plastic packaging.