Battegazzore Daniele, Cravero Fulvia, Frache Alberto
Dipartimento di Scienza Applicata e Tecnologia, Politecnico di Torino, Alessandria site, Viale Teresa Michel 5, 15121 Alessandria, Italy.
Polymers (Basel). 2020 Nov 17;12(11):2726. doi: 10.3390/polym12112726.
In a singular period, such as during a pandemic, the use of personal protective masks can become mandatory for all citizens in many places worldwide. The most used device is the disposable mask that, inevitably, generates a substantial waste flow to send to incineration or landfill. The article examines the most diffused type of disposable face mask and identifies the characteristic of the constituent materials through morphological, chemical, physical, and thermal analyses. Based on these investigations, a mechanical recycling protocol with different approaches is proposed. Advantages and disadvantages of the different recycling solutions are discussed with considerations on necessary separation processes and other treatments. The four solutions investigated lead to a recycling index from 78 to 91% of the starting disposable mask weight. The rheological, mechanical, and thermo-mechanical properties of the final materials obtained from the different recycling approaches are compared with each other and with solutions present on the market resulting in materials potentially industrially exploitable.
在一个特殊时期，比如大流行期间，在全球许多地方，使用个人防护口罩可能会成为所有公民的强制要求。最常用的防护用品是一次性口罩，不可避免地，这会产生大量的废物流，需要送去焚烧或填埋。本文研究了最常见的一次性口罩类型，并通过形态学、化学、物理和热分析来确定其组成材料的特性。基于这些研究，提出了一种采用不同方法的机械回收方案。讨论了不同回收方案的优缺点，并考虑了必要的分离过程和其他处理方法。所研究的四种解决方案的回收指数达到了起始一次性口罩重量的78%至91%。将不同回收方法得到的最终材料的流变学、机械和热机械性能相互比较，并与市场上现有的解决方案进行比较，结果表明这些材料具有潜在的工业开发价值。
