In the wake of the Gulf Oil Spill, will you:
1. Drive less
2. Stop buying BP gas
3. Change nothing
4. Reduce the use of Plastics
Original poll questions cited through Plastics News (June 2010)
A recent poll was conducted…
Question was “What would life be without plastics?”
73% Unbearable
22% Mildly Annoying
5% Better
Cited from: Plastics News
PS (keep in mind we use recycled products, so the earth is a better place!)
Plastic exports edge upward
The volume of plastic scrap exported in March, at 382.97 million pounds, increased by 3.3 percent when compared to its February figure. However, when weighed against March 2009’s position, the volume of exports fell by 8.2 percent.
The weighted average price of recovered plastic exports for March, at 21.10 cents per pound, increased 3.5 percent from its February standing. And, when compared to March 2009, the price rose 22.6 percent.
Through March, at 1.10 billion pounds, the volume of recovered plastics exported improved 12.2 percent over its 2009 year-to-date (YTD) figure. And, at 20.67 cents per pound, the average price through March was also up 23.7 percent over its YTD standing.
Cited from Plastics Recycling News
Study: Recycled PET, HDPE saves energy, greenhouse gasses
New life cycle inventory (LCI) data for recycled PET and HDPE has found that using each resin “significantly” reduces the environmental impact of products produced made from the materials, according to a study released by The National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR). LCI data is used to create life cycle assessments (LCAs) used to measure sustainability of packaging or other products.
“The sustainability profile and analysis for the PET package must not only take into account its recyclability, and the increasing use of recycled PET resin content in new packaging, but also PET’s inherent performance characteristics: lightweight; shatter-resistant; safe; able to preserve taste and other product characteristics on-shelf; and its suitability to be made significantly lighter without sacrificing performance for a variety of product applications,” says Dennis Sabourin, NAPCOR Executive Director.
According to NAPCOR, using the LCI data and information from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the total amount of PET post consumer containers recycled in 2008, if reclaimed in the U.S., would require approximately 30 trillion British thermal units (Btu) less energy than what would be used to make the equivalent tonnage of virgin PET resin. Additionally, the corresponding savings in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is 1.1 million tons of CO2 equivalents.
The LCI study, “Final Report — Life Cycle Inventory of 100% Postconsumer HDPE and PET Recycled Resin from Postconsumer Containers and Packaging,” was conducted by Franklin Associates, Ltd. and sponsored jointly by NAPCOR, the American Chemistry Council (ACC), the Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers (APR), and the PET Resin Association (PETRA).
Cited by Plastics Recycling Update
Delaware bottle bill to go bye-bye?
Delaware Governor Jack Markell may have saved the Blue Hen State’s bottle redemption system in 2009, with his veto of then-House Bill 201, which looked to repeal the program. However, this time around, it’s not looking so promising for the state’s 28-year-old bottle deposit program, as the Delaware General Assembly has passed a measure that eliminates the program in favor of curbside recycling, and those close to the situation believe Markell will have no quarrels with enacting the bill.
Senate Bill 234 ends the state’s returnable bottle deposit program, replacing it with a four-cent charge imposed on all plastic beverage containers (which would be eliminated after four years), and implements recycling for single-family residences and commercial businesses. Monies generated from the four-cent fee, scheduled to be imposed on December 1st and last until December 1, 2014, would be used to establish the curbside system, an amount estimated to be around $22 million over four years. Fees would be distributed to a newly-created Delaware Recycling Fund and Recycling Grants and Low-Interest Program, both of which would be used to defray the costs of implementation.
As for the curbside collection portion of the bill, it requires the Delaware Solid Waste Authority to cease its collecting of curbside recyclables as of September 15, 2011; instead, requiring municipalities and waste haulers to implement comprehensive recycling programs for the residential sector, by 2013, and the commercial sector, by 2014. The state’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control would provide grants to municipalities in control of their own trash collection, as well as to private waste hauling businesses, with the intentions of balancing the costs involved in increasing the amount of trucks and bins needed to ensure program success.
Another notable provision in the bill sets Delaware’s municipal waste recycling target at 50 percent for 2015, rising to 60 percent by 2020. Total recycling rates, including those for business and commercial castoffs, would be set at 72 percent in 2015 and 80 percent in 2020.
Cited by Plastics Recycling Update
Note to customers:
You will be charged for every pallet used to ship your order. Our pallets are specifically made to accommodate the plastic sheeting and prevent damages or warping during shipping.
Make sure to ask about the pallet charges that will be added to your final bill.
Usually we allow around 2000-2500 lbs per pallet.
On single roll shipments, we don’t charge for a pallet- it’s a regular rung pallet and those are free of charge.
Thanks!
Plastic bag makers tout sacks’ ability to be recycled…
A series of plastic bag recycling programs kicked off in advance of Earth Day, sponsored by the American Chemistry Council’s Progressive Bag Affiliates (PBA) and other local organizations.
In Philadelphia, the PBA partnered with Temple University, Keep Philadelphia Beautiful and the Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association to launch a plastic bag recycling consumer education drive for city residents on April 14th. Over 230 retail stores are participating in the program to date, including Target, Kmart and Sears.
Elsewhere, PBA sponsored events in Florida and in King County, Washington are scheduled to begin April 20th. Floridians will get to experience “A Bag’s Life” community-based public education campaign about the lifecycle of the ubiquitous sacks. King County residents will take part in a collection challenge at a local school, titled “Bag Your Bags, Bring ‘em Back.”
All events are designed to educate residents on the importance of recycling plastic bags, and where they can go to recycling their collected materials. The volume of plastic bags and product wraps recycled reached an estimated 832.3 million pounds in 2008. The following year, 2009, the PBA set a goal of 40-percent recycled content in all plastic shopping bags by 2015.
Cited from Plastics Recycling Update
The following is a list of some of our distributors across the US:
Dawson Engineering – Minnesota
Bob Erickson – Southern California
Orscheln Farm & Home – Midwest
Central Confinement – Nebraska
Luco Manufacturing – Kansas
QC Supply – Nebraska
Pork N More – Iowa
Midwest Livestock – Nebraska
Edleman’s – Kansas
Danny Chaffin – Oklahoma
Hickenbottom – Iowa
News tidbits on other plastics in the industry:
A new device for processing polystyrene has been patented by Joseph Sanders of Glendale, Kentucky. Outlined in Patent No. 7,696,305, the machine heats and dissolves scrap polystyrene in to an organic solvent, before separating out the recoverable material.
Patent No. 7,696,255 has been awarded to Danish firm Wietek Holding GmbH, for a new plastics recycling process. Scrap plastics are dissolved in an organic solvent under heat and pressure and then recovered by evaporating the solvent.
Tokyo’s Nippon Steel Corp. has been awarded Patent No. 7,695,669 for a method of reutilizing and shaping waste plastic. Scrap material is heated and compressed to yield a plastic granular material having an apparent density of 0.7 to 1.2 kilograms per liter.
For more information on these or any patents, please consult the U.S. Patent Office database online.
Copies of patents can be ordered by number for $3 each from the Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA, 22313-1450.
Cited by Plastics Recycling Update
In its simplest terms, the main difference between the different types of plastic is the way their cellular structure, or molecules bond with each other, and how tightly they are formed.
- 1) Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE), most common type of plastic sheeting, very flexible, most often from 0.5 mil thick to about 40 mil in flexible sheeting forms. Good conformability to surfaces. Because the cell structure is not as strong or dense as some other types of plastic sheeting, it is not typically as strong or puncture resistant as other forms or blends, but has thousands of common uses. Widely used for everything from construction and agricultural sheeting (often called Visqueen), Engineered Plastic Sheeting of countless types for such things as Vapor Retarders (also called Vapor Barriers by many), Surface Protection films, Pond and Canal Liners, Abatement Plastic, Containment, packaging, and the list goes on.
- 2) Linear Low Density Polyethylene (LLDPE), blended form of LDPE where the film has much more flexibility, tensile strength, and more conformability. LLDPE is “softer” and more pliable, so is an excellent choice for such things as pond liners, or blended into other films to give them extra strength and flexibility. This is perfect for an application like a self-adhesive carpet protection film, where the film needs to have an amazing amount of strength in a very thin film to absorb impacts, but not tear or puncture. In this form of poly, the molecules all line up and strongly hold together as the film is stretched to give the structure much more strength and elongation than LDPE. Most common in thicknesses ranging from 0.5 mil to 40 mil in flexible plastic sheeting.
- 3) Medium Density Polyethylene (MDPE), the least commonly used form of polyethylene for flexible plastic sheeting. Has more strength than LDPE, a little more chemical resistance, tighter cell structure, more puncture and tear resistance. Often blended with LDPE and or LLDPE to give the attributes one is looking for in a particular type of film. For instance, many pond liners have MDPE to add some strength and toughness, without adding too much stiffness.
- 4) High Density Polyethylene (HDPE, aka HD), widely used for many applications. HDPE is the strongest, toughest, most chemical resistant, and least flexible of these four types of polyethylene. It also has the most UV resistance of the bunch without additive packages to increase this attribute. HDPE has a very tight cell structure, making it very difficult for other molecules to pass through its structure on a microscopic level. HDPE is the most easily field seamed of these products, and is generally used on an industrial level in thicknesses from about 12 mil to 100 mil thick. Most golf course ponds are lined with HDPE, most industrial ponds and canal liners, secondary containment liners, root barriers, many applications where chemical resistance is needed. This is also used in thousands or maybe millions of applications in thinner forms, especially in blends with the other types of polyethylene, because the HDPE adds much strength and toughness with its very tight bonds with other molecules.
The density of polyethylene is measured in a column of water, and they are all classified depending on ranges of density. LDPE (and LLDPE) are generally within the range of 0.919-0.924 g/cm³. MDPE are generally within the range of 0.926-0.940 g/cm³. HDPE are generally within the range of 0.941-0.965 g/cm³. These numbers can vary slightly depending on your source, and are not set in stone, just general guidelines.
Written by Lee Hinsley- Plastic Sheeting Expert
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