AIMPLAS, the Plastics Technology Centre, has joined the DECOST project, run by a consortium of 17 organizations focusing on recycling coated and painted textiles and plastic materials which are not currently recyclable.
This follows plastic recycling targets of 50% set by the European Plastics Industry, AIMPLAS says. ‘To meet these targets, smart solutions to enable the circular use of textile and plastic parts with multi-layer coatings must be considered,’ it added. ‘Many materials consist of more than one chemical component, hindering their recyclability, such as coated and laminated products. Ideally, all the components of an object after its end-of-life should be separated and fed to the most suited recycling streams.’
The DECOAT project will involve reseaching smart additives (such as microcapsules or microwave triggered additives) for the ‘coating’ formulations that will be activated by a specific trigger (heat, humidity, microwave, chemical). The aim of the four-year project is to decrease landfilling of around 75% of the coated parts considered in the DECOAT use cases, which cover clothing, electronic goods and automotive, along with a reduction in the carbon footprint by at least 30% for the considered products.
This story uses material from AIMPLAS, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier.
