PVC RECYCLING | MATERIALS
PVC recycling is on the rise in Australia – with projects ranging from the collection of waste hospital product to a chemical technique to recycle tarpaulins
Second life for PVC down under
For a long time, the plastics industry has been under pressure to improve recycling levels – especially for PVC. The most comprehensive PVC recycling scheme
is probably Europe’s VinylPlus programme, which aims to recycle 800,000 tonnes/year by 2020. (The organisation reports its latest progress report in mid-May.) However, other regions are also pushing forward with schemes to recycle PVC. The Vinyl Council of Australia, which represents the local PVC industry, recently ran a two-day event that included several papers on PVC collection and recycling. One paper, from Dennis Collins, presented details
of a chemical recycling process that he has devel- oped for PVC. Collins is the owner of Paper Freight, a paper distribution company that has moved into recycling newsprint – and, more recently, PVC. His process has so far been used on ‘soft PVC’ such as banners and tarpaulins. The material is cut into small pieces, then soaked in a chemical. Then, the liquid is drained off, and a catalyst is added to the plastic mix.
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“This causes the PVC to puff up like popcorn – which is the separation happening,” said Collins. Once the catalyst has been drained off, the PVC is put into a machine to complete the separation. The recovered materials are clean enough to go back on the market, he says. This process also works on blister packs, which
are made of aluminium, PVC and other plastics. “The PVC recovered from these is a very clean
product and tests have shown that it can be extruded very well,” said Collins. It has also been applied to: advertising adhesive signs (such as those found on buses); PVC lami- nated with other plastics; fibre optic cable; and PVC-coated copper wire. “All these products can be recycled using the
process,” he said. It has also been used to separate PVC out of
products as diverse as coffee cups, Tetra Paks and shoes.
“I’m also doing a lot of research and develop-
ment, as people send me different products to test,” he said.
� May 2018 | PIPE & PROFILE EXTRUSION 25
Main image: An Australian recycling scheme recovers PVC waste – such as medical tubing – from more than 100 hospitals
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