ith more than 8 million tons of plastic entering the ocean each year, humanity must urgently rethink the way we make and use plastics, so that they do not become waste in the first place. Cheap, light, and versatile, plastics are the dominant materials of our modern economy. Their production is expected to double over the next two decades. Yet, only 14% of all plastic packaging is collected for...

Silicones are used in the plastics industry as additives for improving the processing and surface properties of plastics, as well as the rubber phase in a novel family of thermoplastic vulcanizate (TPV) materials. As additives, silicones, and in particular polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), are used to improve mold filling, surface appearance, mold release, surface lubricity and wear resistance. As t...

Plastics are low molecular weight organic materials, that are non degradable in the natural environment. Generation of plastic waste constitutes a major part of Municipal Solid Waste. This creates a lot of environment pollution, which in turn affects ecosystem and human health. The solution to tackle this dreadful situation lies in following 3R namely Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Waste plastics c...

We investigated the plastics ingested by short-tailed shearwaters, Puffinus tenuirostris, that were accidentally caught during experimental fishing in the North Pacific Ocean in 2003 and 2005. The mean mass of plastics found in the stomach was 0.23 g per bird (n=99). Plastic mass did not correlate with body weight. Total PCB (sum of 24 congeners) concentrations in the abdominal adipose tissue o...

In this study, we propose one-step chemical modification of plastics for bonding various plastics with poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) elastomer at room temperature. This was realized by anchoring poly[dimethylsiloxane-co-(3-aminopropyl)methylsiloxane] (amine-PDMS linker), a chemical composed of a PDMS backbone incorporating an amine side group, on the surface of thermoplastics. Following corona ...

The market of minimally processed food is increasing and as a result also the occurrence of food borne deceases, such as Listeria monocytogenes in e.g. meat. The increasing demand for fresh food has created a need for better packages that improves the food preservation, prevents microbial growth and prolongs the shelf life. However, packaging plastics made from petroleum sources have been found...

The current paper summarizes the results of a study aimed at assessing the effectiveness of design for recycling strategies for plastic components. Interviews and site visits were conducted with computer disassemblers and plastics recyclers based in the United States and Europe to investigate the effectiveness of design for recycling guidelines. Both manual and automated recycling technologies ...