Analyses of the recycling potential of medical plastic wastes

Medical wastes have been historically disposed of either in landfills or treated in poorly-designed or inadequately-controlled incinerators that leads to the release of a significant quantity of hazardous pollutants, such as dioxins and heavy metals including Cd, Hg and Pb in the environment. This has led to increased public concerns over the disposal of medical wastes. Plastic is one of the most important components of the medical waste. The plastic content (20–25% by weight) of medical waste is significantly higher than that of municipality solid waste. Therefore, recycling of plastics should be increased to save landfill space and also to reduce expensive disposal cost of medical wastes. The recycling issues like risk of transmitting infections, improper collection and separation, can be resolved by proper management, education and innovative waste collection and disposal policies. Analysis and use of alternative products should always be considered as an important part of any recycling program.

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Co-pyrolysis performances, synergistic mechanisms, and products of textile dyeing sludge and medical plastic wastes

The Science of The Total Environment ◽

10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.149397 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 149397

Author(s):

Ziyi Ding ◽

Jingyong Liu ◽

Huashan Chen ◽

Shengzheng Huang ◽

Fatih Evrendilek ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Textile Dyeing ◽

Plastic Wastes ◽

Medical Plastic

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Parametric Optimization of Medical Plastic Wastes Conversion into Transportation Fuel using Mamdani Fuzzy Inference Systems (FIS)

International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering - 2 ◽

10.35940/ijrte.d7135.038620 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (6) ◽

pp. 1438-1446

Keyword(s):

Liquid Fuel ◽

Catalyst Concentration ◽

Fuzzy Inference ◽

Batch Reactor ◽

Maximum Yield ◽

Value Added ◽

Transportation Fuel ◽

Inference System ◽

Plastic Wastes ◽

Medical Plastic

Rapid growth of medical plastic wastes required attention for its scientific disposal along with conversion into value added products. Pyrolysis method is found suitable process for such conversion of such wastes into liquid oil. The experiment was carried out with the medical plastic wastes collected from local medicals and treated in a batch reactor taking appropriate range of temperature change and use of Calcium bentonite (CB) and Zeolite-A (ZA) as catalysts. The yield of liquid oil, gas and char produced from the process are collected in scale. The yield of liquid fuel in this process was influenced by factors such as temperature, catalyst concentration and acidity of catalyst. It was observed that yield of liquid fuel in this process were significantly dependent on temperature, nature of catalyst and catalyst concentration. The maximum yield of oil reported at 500 C and even increased by adding 20% by weight of CB as catalyst and 10% by weight of Z-A. In this study, Mamdani Fuzzy inference System (FIS) is used in order to measure the performance of the process and can be analyzed with more objectives, oriented through mathematical modelling and simulation. Mamdani Fuzzy inference was also introduced to identify the significant factors affecting the response and helps to determine the best possible factor level of combination. Finally, a regression model for liquid fuel from catalytic degradation of medical plastic wastes has been developed and mapped as a function of process parameters.

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Eco-Friendly Recycling Potential of Microwave Melting for the Recovery of Useful and Precious Metals from E-Waste

Studia Universitatis Babeș-Bolyai Ambientum ◽

10.24193/subbambientum.2018.2.04 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 63 (2) ◽

pp. 39-52

Author(s):

Daniela Violeta Dumitrescu ◽

◽

Vasile Soare ◽

Ionuţ Constantin ◽

Marian Burada ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Precious Metals ◽

Recycling Potential

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Uncovering the in-use metal stocks and implied recycling potential in electric vehicle batteries considering cascaded use: a case study of China

Environmental Science and Pollution Research ◽

10.1007/s11356-021-13430-7 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Hui Yang ◽

Xiaolong Song ◽

Xihua Zhang ◽

Bin Lu ◽

Dong Yang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Electric Vehicle ◽

Recycling Potential

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The recyclable waste recycling potential towards zero waste cities - A comparison of three cities in China

Journal of Cleaner Production ◽

10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.126358 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 295 ◽

pp. 126358

Author(s):

Binxian Gu ◽

Xinyi Tang ◽

Lingxuan Liu ◽

Yuanyuan Li ◽

Takeshi Fujiwara ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Waste Recycling ◽

Zero Waste ◽

Recycling Potential

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A Review on Utilization of Plastic Wastes in Making Construction Bricks

IOP Conference Series Earth and Environmental Science ◽

10.1088/1755-1315/706/1/012001 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 706 (1) ◽

pp. 012001

Author(s):

Shu-Lun Mak ◽

Tanya Ming Yan Wu ◽

Fanny Wai Fan Tang ◽

Jimmy Chi Ho Li ◽

Chi Wing Lai

Keyword(s):

Plastic Wastes

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Application of Plastic Wastes in Construction Materials: A Review Using the Concept of Life-Cycle Assessment in the Context of Recent Research for Future Perspectives

Materials ◽

10.3390/ma14133549 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (13) ◽

pp. 3549

Author(s):

Tulane Rodrigues da Silva ◽

Afonso Rangel Garcez de Azevedo ◽

Daiane Cecchin ◽

Markssuel Teixeira Marvila ◽

Mugahed Amran ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Life Cycle Assessment ◽

Life Cycle ◽

Solid Waste ◽

Building Materials ◽

Construction Materials ◽

Plastic Waste ◽

Plastic Wastes ◽

Solid Waste Generation ◽

Alternative Processes

The urbanization process contributes to the growth of solid waste generation and causes an increase in environmental impacts and failures in the management of solid waste. The number of dumps is a concern due to the limited implementation and safe disposal of this waste. The interest in sustainable techniques has been growing in relation to waste management, which is largely absorbed by the civil construction sector. This work aimed to review plastic waste, especially polyethylene terephthalate (PET), that can be incorporated with construction materials, such as concrete, mortars, asphalt mixtures, and paving. The use of life-cycle assessment (LCA) is related, as a tool that allows the sustainability of products and processes to be enhanced in the long term. After analyzing the recent literature, it was identified that studies related to plastic wastes in construction materials concentrate sustainability around the alternative destination of waste. Since the plastic waste from different production chains are obtained, it was possible to affirm the need for a broader assessment, such as the LCA, providing greater quantification of data making the alternative processes and products more sustainable. The study contributes to enhance sustainability in alternative building materials through LCA.

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