| Title |
Learnings about design from recycling by using post-consumer polypropylene as a core layer in a co-injection molded sandwich structure product |
| ID_Doc |
12657 |
| Authors |
Gall, M; Steinbichler, G; Lang, RW |
| Title |
Learnings about design from recycling by using post-consumer polypropylene as a core layer in a co-injection molded sandwich structure product |
| Year |
2021 |
| Published |
|
| DOI |
10.1016/j.matdes.2021.109576 |
| Abstract |
In pursuit of a circular economy of plastics, there is a need to use more recycled plastics for new products. Polypropylene (PP) constitutes a major fraction of post-consumer plastic wastes, and mechanical recycling is currently the most sustainable recovery strategy. Sandwich-structured multi-layer products with recyclate cores are a seemingly easy way to satisfy demands for recyclate utilization without compromising on product aesthetics. We present the case of a reusable plastic transport box with a recycled content of 45 wt% manufactured by a co-injection molding process. The box was characterized by spectroscopic and thermo-analytical methods. Mechanical performance was tested on both specimen and product levels. A comparison was made to transport boxes fabricated entirely from virgin or entirely from recycled PP, respectively. A number of contaminants including foreign polymers were identified within the recyclate core layer of the sandwich-structured material. While these contaminants had no deteriorative effect on stiffness-controlled performance, a strong influence on strength-controlled and impact related properties was observed. We argue that the presence of inclusions of both polymeric and inorganic nature is an intrinsic quality characteristic of post-consumer recyclates. These need to be considered in any design-from recycling philosophy to guarantee functionality, reliability, and safety of products with recycled content. ? 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
| Author Keywords |
Co-injection molding; Mechanical recycling; Polypropylene; Post-consumer; Recycled content; Sandwich structure |
| Index Keywords |
Index Keywords |
| Document Type |
Other |
| Open Access |
Open Access |
| Source |
Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED) |
| EID |
WOS:000633004100002 |
| WoS Category |
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary |
| Research Area |
Materials Science |
| PDF |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2021.109576
|