Environmental Sustainability of Solvent Extraction Method in Recycling Marine Plastic Waste

Ily Asilah Ibrahim, Kuan Shiong Khoo, Hemamalini Rawindran (), Jun Wei Lim (), Hui-Suan Ng, Muhammad Kashif Shahid, Woei-Yenn Tong (), Mohammad Rafe Hatshan, Yi-Ming Sun, John Chi-Wei Lan, Yi Jing Chan and Anwar Usman
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Ily Asilah Ibrahim: HICoE-Centre for Biofuel and Biochemical Research, Institute of Self-Sustainable Building, Department of Fundamental and Applied Sciences, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Seri Iskandar 32610, Perak Darul Ridzuan, Malaysia
Kuan Shiong Khoo: Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Yuan Ze University, Taoyuan 32003, Taiwan
Hemamalini Rawindran: HICoE-Centre for Biofuel and Biochemical Research, Institute of Self-Sustainable Building, Department of Fundamental and Applied Sciences, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Seri Iskandar 32610, Perak Darul Ridzuan, Malaysia
Jun Wei Lim: HICoE-Centre for Biofuel and Biochemical Research, Institute of Self-Sustainable Building, Department of Fundamental and Applied Sciences, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Seri Iskandar 32610, Perak Darul Ridzuan, Malaysia
Hui-Suan Ng: Centre for Research and Graduate Studies, University of Cyberjaya, Persiaran Bestari, Cyberjaya 63000, Selangor, Malaysia
Muhammad Kashif Shahid: Research Institute of Environment & Biosystem, Chungnam National University, Yuseonggu, Daejeon 34134, Republic of Korea
Woei-Yenn Tong: Institute of Medical Science Technology, Universiti Kuala Lumpur, A1-1, Jalan TKS 1, Taman Kajang Sentral, Kajang 43000, Selangor, Malaysia
Mohammad Rafe Hatshan: Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Yi-Ming Sun: Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Yuan Ze University, Taoyuan 32003, Taiwan
John Chi-Wei Lan: Biorefinery and Bioprocess Engineering Laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Yuan Ze University, Taoyuan 32003, Taiwan
Yi Jing Chan: Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Nottingham Malaysia, Broga Road, Semenyih 43500, Selangor, Malaysia
Anwar Usman: Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Gadong BE1410, Brunei

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 22, 1-17

Abstract: The global plastic production of 400 million tons/year has caused major catastrophes in marine environments. The current study, therefore, aimed to mitigate this challenge through the dissolution–reprecipitation method of eradicating impurities and contaminants from marine plastic debris. The results revealed that the rate of the dissolution of polyethylene (PE) outweighed polypropylene (PP) at lower temperatures. HDPE (high density polyethylene) and PP had optimal dissolution temperatures of 75 °C and 90 °C at 20 and 30 min, respectively, resulting in recovery percentages of 96.67% and 87.35% when applied to actual marine waste samples. Overall, this recycling method conserved the plastic quality and properties, making it a viable alternative for virgin plastics. The life cycle assessment (LCA) revealed that the drying stage demonstrated the greatest environmental impact within the system. The overall process, however, yielded a lower environmental impact in comparison with established findings. Conclusively, the current study has successfully restored marine plastic waste with high recovery rates and minimum chemical alterations, yielding a low environmental footprint.

Keywords: plastic waste; marine environment; solvent extraction; sustainability; life cycle assessment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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