eli5, what did they do to plastic to make it recyclable ?
In: Chemistry
“Plastic” is a very broad term – it covers an entire group of materials (typically synthetic polymers), and is often misused.
As a general, though not fixed, rule, if you want to recycle (that is, return to original condition) then you have to be able to melt the plastic and reform it. “thermoplastics” is a term normally used for this. They have been around for 70+ years. Things like Coke bottles are an example of this material type.
As another broad category, “thermosetting plastics” are also used. These cant be melted down and reformed. Things like pens are typically thermopsetting plastics. But not being able to reform it doesn’t mean that it can’t be reused. They can be ground up and included within another material mix. These have also been around for decades
On top of that are a whole bunch of other polymers like polyamides (nylon variants) and microcellular materials (e.g. chloroprene) that can either be reused or recycled. Unsurprisingly, these are also not new materials.
So nothing has happened to make them recyclable, but mechanisms to collect and cost effectively recycle have become more available.
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