Publication detail

Environmental Impacts of Plastic Materials Flow Minimisation Using Data-Driven Pinch Method

Varbanov, P.S. Chin, H.H. Jia, X. Sher, F. Klemeš, J.J.

English title

Environmental Impacts of Plastic Materials Flow Minimisation Using Data-Driven Pinch Method

Type

journal article in Scopus

Language

en

Original abstract

Plastics recycling, as a subclass of material recovery and recycling, features extensive and intensive properties. The intensive properties can be used to define a recyclability criterion and to classify the plastic materials for a symbiotic system (industrial, municipal and commercial) into recyclability categories, where the materials with higher recyclability can be either recycled/reused within the same category or cascaded and made available to categories with lower recyclability. The potential surplus waste materials of lowest-grade recyclability would be destined for waste treatment and disposal, while the potential deficit of materials in the highest-grade recyclability category would have to be fulfilled by supplying fresh plastic material produced from primary raw materials. The current contribution takes this problem formulation as a basis to optimise the plastics recycling of industrial symbiotic systems. It defines a Plastic Material Cascade Diagram and an associated set of Supply-Demand Composite Curves, identifying the recycling bottleneck – a Pinch Point limiting the rate of recycling and determining the most efficient material recycling network design. A case study is formulated to illustrate the usefulness of the new concept in reducing the consumption of raw materials and final waste. © 2021 Italian Association of Chemical Engineering – AIDIC. All rights reserved.

English abstract

Plastics recycling, as a subclass of material recovery and recycling, features extensive and intensive properties. The intensive properties can be used to define a recyclability criterion and to classify the plastic materials for a symbiotic system (industrial, municipal and commercial) into recyclability categories, where the materials with higher recyclability can be either recycled/reused within the same category or cascaded and made available to categories with lower recyclability. The potential surplus waste materials of lowest-grade recyclability would be destined for waste treatment and disposal, while the potential deficit of materials in the highest-grade recyclability category would have to be fulfilled by supplying fresh plastic material produced from primary raw materials. The current contribution takes this problem formulation as a basis to optimise the plastics recycling of industrial symbiotic systems. It defines a Plastic Material Cascade Diagram and an associated set of Supply-Demand Composite Curves, identifying the recycling bottleneck – a Pinch Point limiting the rate of recycling and determining the most efficient material recycling network design. A case study is formulated to illustrate the usefulness of the new concept in reducing the consumption of raw materials and final waste. © 2021 Italian Association of Chemical Engineering – AIDIC. All rights reserved.

Keywords in English

environmental; impacts; plastic; materials; flow; minimisation; data-driven; pinch method

Released

15.11.2021

Publisher

Italian Association of Chemical Engineering - AIDIC

ISSN

2283-9216

Number

88

Pages from–to

967–972

Pages count

6

BIBTEX


@article{BUT175965,
  author="Petar Sabev {Varbanov} and Hon Huin {Chin} and Xuexiu {JIA} and Jiří {Klemeš},
  title="Environmental Impacts of Plastic Materials Flow Minimisation Using Data-Driven Pinch Method",
  year="2021",
  number="88",
  month="November",
  pages="967--972",
  publisher="Italian Association of Chemical Engineering - AIDIC",
  issn="2283-9216"
}