Plastic Recycling

Plastic is the name given to a wide range of compounds made from the resources of oil and gas. Oil and gas are formed over many millions of years from rotting organic matter covered in layers of mud being heated and compressed and are therefore non-renewable.

Manufacturing Oil, coal and natural gas are combined under special conditions of temperature and pressure to create plastic polymers. Various chemicals can be added, dependent on the type of plastic being created, to give it various properties. Once the plastic is created it is transformed into resin pellets or a powder form.

The resin or powder is transported to the manufacturer to be moulded and shaped into its final form. To do this, the pellets or powder are heated and melted down, depending on the type of plastic used and the type of product being made. The plastic is then moulded, using one of three different processes:

1. Injection moulding: used for specificallyshaped objects like cups, toys and plumbingfittings.

2. Extrusion moulding: makes plastic sheets,pipe or tube.

3. Blow moulding: for bottles and drums

There are about 40 different plastics used today. Each has a different chemical composition, a different strength and durability and is suitable for different uses. Most plastic products and packaging today are stamped with a Plastic Identification Code, a triangle containing a number, at the manufacturing stage, to assist in identifying the different types of plastics we use.

Decomposition Plastic is very long lasting, and this can cause environmental problems. It can take more than 600 years for plastic products to decompose.

General plastic recycling – beyond the recycling bin Plastic containers placed in the yellow lidded recycling bin are transported to the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) for sorting. Here they are removed from the other recyclable materials by hand and sorted into plastic types. Once sorted, the containers are crushed into bales and transported to companies for reprocessing.

At the reprocessing plant the plastics are shredded, chopped or ground into small pieces and washed. HandDur ing the wash ing Sorting process, the various types of shredded plastic will separate according to their densities. This enables further sorting into specific Baled plastic types before the Plastic plastics are melted into resin. The resin is stretched into strands and cut into beads or ground into powder. Plastic

FlakeThe beads or powder are then melted and moulded back into a recycled product. Refer to the Plastic Identification Chart on this fact sheet to find out New what recycled products are Products made from the various types of plastic.

www.logan.qld.gov.au

In Logan City we can safely recycle all rigid plastic household containers from the kitchen, bathroom and laundry that are labelled 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6. The following are examples that can be recycled through our kerbside recycling system:

soft drink bottles

milk bottles

detergent bottles

shampoo bottles

yoghurt pots

margarine containers

ice cream containers.

Plastics de-coding

What cannot be recycled at the kerbside?

The following items are NOT recyclable:

plastic bags

plastic toys

cling wrap

polystyrene trays

large plastic items such as chairs and tables.

These items can cause contamination or damage to the machinery in the recycling process.

Plastic recycling tips

Remove all lids

Rinse and squash bottles

The coding system does an excellent job of identifying the different types of plastic to both the general public and plastic recyclers. When recycling plastics, look for the Plastics Identification Code only.

The table below outlines the codes of each of the different plastic types, their characteristics, uses and recycled uses.

Plastic Recycling continued...

www.logan.qld.gov.au What can be recycled at the kerbside?

Plastic Identification Code Name of plastic Characteristics Uses in a new form Uses for recycled plastics 1

1 Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET)

Clear, tough, often used as a fibre

Soft drink bottles, sleeping bag filling

Soft drink bottles, clear film for packaging

2 2

High Density Polyethylene (HDPE)

Hard to semi flexible, usually white or coloured

Crinkly shopping bags, milk bottles

Compost bins, bleach bottles

3

3

Unplasticised Polyvinyl Chloride (UPVC)

Plasticised Polyvinyl Chloride (PPVC)

Hard to rigid, can be clear

Flexible, clear elastic plastic

Cordial & juice bottles

Shoe soles, garden hose

Pipes for plumbing hoses

4 4

Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE)

Soft and flexible, waxy surface

Ice cream lids, garbage bags

Food & freezer bags

5 5

Polypropylene (PP) Hard but flexible – has many uses

Ice cream containers, crisp bags

Compost bins, worm farms

6

6

Polystyrene (PS)

Expanded Polystyrene (EPS)

Rigid and brittle, clear or glassy looking

Light weight and foam-like

Yoghurt pots, plastic cutlery

Hot drink cups, take away containers

Clothes pegs, hangers