Center for Plastics Innovation, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716, USA.
Center for Research in Soft matter and Polymers, and Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716, USA.
Science. 2021 Jul 2;373(6550):66-69. doi: 10.1126/science.abg4503.
Plastics have revolutionized modern life, but have created a global waste crisis driven by our reliance and demand for low-cost, disposable materials. New approaches are vital to address challenges related to plastics waste heterogeneity, along with the property reductions induced by mechanical recycling. Chemical recycling and upcycling of polymers may enable circularity through separation strategies, chemistries that promote closed-loop recycling inherent to macromolecular design, and transformative processes that shift the life-cycle landscape. Polymer upcycling schemes may enable lower-energy pathways and minimal environmental impacts compared with traditional mechanical and chemical recycling. The emergence of industrial adoption of recycling and upcycling approaches is encouraging, solidifying the critical role for these strategies in addressing the fate of plastics and driving advances in next-generation materials design.
塑料彻底改变了现代生活，但由于我们对低成本、一次性材料的依赖和需求，造成了全球性的废弃物危机。新方法对于应对与塑料废弃物异质性相关的挑战以及机械回收所导致的性能降低至关重要。聚合物的化学回收和升级回收可以通过分离策略、促进高分子设计固有闭环回收的化学物质以及改变生命周期景观的变革性工艺来实现循环性。与传统的机械和化学回收相比，聚合物升级回收方案可能实现更低的能源消耗和最小的环境影响。回收和升级回收方法在工业中的采用令人鼓舞，这巩固了这些策略在解决塑料命运和推动下一代材料设计方面的关键作用。
