In times when recycling goes hand in hand with caring for the environment and in order to contribute to reducing the effects of climate change, it is when the recycling of plastic waste becomes increasingly necessary.
What do the numbers on the plastic containers mean?
In order to carry out an effective and ecological reuse, the first thing that must be done is a classification of the waste, depending on the material that it is composed of.
The most observant and detailed have been able to appreciate in the plastic containers and wrappers that are labeled with the symbology «biodegradable» Accompanied by a number between 1 and 7.
But what do these digits mean? How do they help recycling? Next, we will explain it to you.
The numbers that include the plastic containers correspond to the Resin Identification Code and were created in 1988 by the Plastics Industry Society to identify the resin content of each type of plastic container in order to facilitate segregation prior to recycling.
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- Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET): Commonly used for containers of soft drinks, juices, water and in the textile industry. It is one of the simplest materials to recycle. However, their use is easily replaced by reusable or returnable bottles.
- High Density Polyethylene (HDPE): The most common use of HDPE plastic is detergent containers, shampoo, dairy products, pipes, flower pots and the use that has caused the most rejection lately, shopping bags in stores and supermarkets.
- Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC): Its use in pipes is generally known, but it can also be found in oil bottles, shampoo, medicine containers, meat packaging, tablecloths, to name a few. PVC is considered toxic because chlorine is used in its manufacture. In addition, it releases vinyl chloride, which with the increase in temperature can pass into liquids (pipes or water bottles).
- Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE): This type of plastic is considered slightly hazardous and is generally found in flexible packaging such as those for mustard, mayonnaise and ketchup, in frozen food bags and in liquid containers such as tetrapak and coffee cups.
- Polypropylene (PP): One of the most common uses of polypropylene is in yogurt containers and it is also widely used in take-out food containers such as sushi, cakes, disposable tableware, beverage lids and straws. One way to identify it is by wrinkling it because unlike High Density Polyethylene, it sounds.
- Polypropylene (PP): Styrofoam or plumavit is commonly used in meat trays, appliance packaging, and some coffee cups. This material takes a thousand years to degrade, so its use is in retreat.
- Other Plastics: Here are all the plastics that cannot be classified in the previous categories. In general, these are items that include various types of plastic and therefore the possible damage they cause to health is not known with certainty because the types of resins they contain are not exactly known.
Recycle in Chile
In the country in recent years, recycling has become an important issue and this is how organizations and companies are interested in incorporating technology into their processes that allows the reuse of products.
This is how the Chilean company Bucuplasthas the goal of becoming the largest recycling plant in the world, for which it has managed to recycle plastics number 7, receiving the material that everyone throws away.
The purpose of this work is to transform items that pollute or that no one reuses to make way for objects that can be occupied forever, through the plastic injection method, where the resin is transformed into items such as crockery, tables, piggy banks, and different objects that can be used in Chilean homes or be marketed, in order to also achieve an economic benefit from them.
Bacuplast recently made a millionaire investment in his company, to also create the R&D department and promote eco-design, as a way of creating articles, which can then be easily reused, thanks to the fact that its design allows it. .
For more information on the uses of plastic and what can be created with this element, whether new or recyclable, you can go to www.bacuplast.cl.