What and where is plastic.
collected
recycled
abandoned in the environment
Brazil is the 4th largest producer of plastic waste in the world, with 11.3 million tons. Of this total, more than 10.3 million tons are collected (91%), but only 145 thousand tons (1.28%) are actually recycled.
(data wwf.org.br)
Main plastic consumption in Brasil
data: abrelpe.org.br; PIA product 2017
For the choice of the material to be recycled for the production of puppets, the percentages of plastics consumed in Brazil in 2017 were analyzed.
It emerged that PP, HDPE and PVC are the most consumed ones. PVC however is mainly used in the industrial environment and not in the domestic one.
Considering the above the recycling of PP, HDPE and PET plastics have been chosen for these project.
Recycling plastic is an
OPPORTUNITY
The big problem related to recycling is the division of the different plastic materials, it is important to know that the plastic is not all the same and must be recycled separately.
The plastics are divided into thermoplastics and thermosets. The recyclable ones are thermoplastic.
But there are different types of thermoplastics, you can often check what kind of plastic it belongs by looking at the number on the bottom ...
1
PET
-
good mechanical properties
-
more transparent than glass
-
waterproof
-
tenacious and easy to work
-
recycled can become pile
-
suitable for maintaining pressure inside
2
HDPE
-
good rigidity and mechanical strength
-
good resistance to corrosive agents
-
cheap
-
easy to produce
-
good electrical insulation
-
floats in water
-
many finishes
​
* you can recognize it because, when subjected to stress, it leaves a white mark
3
PVC
-
among the least expensive and most used polymers
-
not particularly tenacious (often together with additives)
-
corrosion resistant
4
LDPE
-
good resistance to corrosive agents
-
cheap
-
easy to produce
-
corrosion resistant
-
good electrical insulation
-
floats in water
-
many finishes
5
PP​
-
cheap
-
light, floats
-
low mechanical strength
-
many finishes
6
PS
-
brittle material
-
easy to work
-
high refractive index (similar to glass)
-
it can be expanded with low thermal conductivity and low cost (used in the packaging)
