Plastic is the doom for every living creature in the world. They are the main component that is causing maximum damages. They’re the threat that has come into our lives due to our fault only. They are synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as the main ingredient. Plastics are made from natural materials such as cellulose, coal, natural gas, salt, and crude oil through a polymerization or polycondensation process. Many additives in plastic are considered extremely harmful for people and the environment, and while we do not have enough information yet on the true magnitude of how plastic pollution affects human health, it is clear that increasing pollution levels do not bode well for us.

Getting rid of plastic is not an easy job. However, we should do our part to save the environment from this grave misfortune.

Plastic Recycling

The step by step process of mechanical recycling is given below:

Step 1: Collection and distribution

The first step in the mechanical recycling process is the collection of post-consumer materials from homes, businesses, and institutions.

Another option is taking plastics to communal collection points such as designated recycling bins or facilities.

Step 2:Sorting and categorizing

The next step in the plastic recycling process is sorting. There are several different types of plastic that needs to be separated from each other by recyclers. Not only that, plastics might be sorted by other properties such as color, thickness, and use. This is done by machines which are at the recycling plant.

Step 3: Washing

Washing removes some of the impurities that can impede the operation. The impurities targeted in this step commonly include things such as product labels and adhesives as well as dirt and food residue.

Step 4: Shredding

The plastic is then fed into shredders, which break it down into much smaller pieces and resized. The resized plastic pieces can be used for other applications without further processing, such as an additive or used as a raw material.

Breaking down the plastic into smaller pieces also allows for any remaining impurities to be found.

Step 5: Identification and separation of plastics

The plastic pieces are tested for their class and quality. First, they are segregated based on density, which is tested by floating the particles of plastic in a container of water. This is followed by a test for what is known as the “air classification”, which determines the thickness of the plastic pieces. It is done by placing the shredded plastic into a wind tunnel, with thinner pieces floating while larger/thicker pieces stay at the bottom.

Step 6:Extruding + compounding

This last plastic recycling process step is where the particles of shredded plastic are transformed into a usable product for manufactures.