Technology which could help identify and categorise different types of plastics in recycling is in development.
Called Plastic Packaging Recycling using Intelligent Separation Technologies for Materials (PRISM), this approach aims to identify new luminescent materials which can be applied, invisibly, to labels on plastic packaging to aid the sorting process in recycling facilities.
And, if the trials are successful, different polymer types could be more easily identifiable under infra-red light.
Innovate UK, a government investment program, is providing a part of the funding over two years alongside the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), matching funding from the commercial partners involved in the project.
Work on PRISM is being led by plastics recycling consultancy Nextek alongside researchers from Brunel University London, equipment manufacturer Tomra Sorting, CCL Label, Mirage Inks, WRAP, Evolve Polymers, Johnson Matthey and Enlightened Lamp Recycling (ELR).
“This could be the equivalent of an invisible barcode for plastics recycling,” Professor Edward Kosior, managing director of Nextek, said.
“It's a significant step forward in the sub-categorisation of plastics which are sorted automatically at high speed.
"It enables new initiatives from brand owners eager to recover their packaging as part of the circular economy.”
According to the project partners, PRISM will develop fluorescent materials from metal oxides as well as converting reprocessed powders from recycled fluorescent lamps into suitable fluorescent materials.
This system is designed to be integrated with the current near infra-red (NIR)-based sorting systems used in materials recovery facilities (MRFs).
The system would be triggered by an ultraviolet (UV) light source that is detected in the visible spectrum.
The project partners also claim that should the project prove to be successful, it could allow food-grade polymers to be distinguished from non-food-grade, black plastics to be identified, and full-length shrink-sleeves to be tagged according to the underlying plastic.
It could also create the possibility for brand owners to establish their own ‘closed-loop’ collection of specific types of packaging.
This story was sourced from the Active & Intelligent Packaging Association. It will hold its conference from 14-15 November in Amsterdam. You can find out more about the congress here and the AIPIA here.
