Rumetshofer Thomas, Fischer Jörg
Institute of Polymeric Materials and Testing, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Altenberger Straße 69, 4040 Linz, Austria.
Polymers (Basel). 2023 Mar 24;15(7):1623. doi: 10.3390/polym15071623.
At the moment, it looks like the plastics recycling industry is skimming only low-hanging fruits of its business. To reach intended targets, a greater effort and disruptive innovations are necessary. Physical- or digital-information-based solutions for tracking plastic material can support the circular economy and help to overcome hurdles along the value chain. In this paper, the scientific literature and initiatives in four different technology areas for information-based tracking solutions are reviewed and analyzed. Physical markers can improve sorting efficiencies on short notice but adhere some technical difficulties. Blockchain as a new concept promises high transparency and security, with the drawbacks of energy-intense verification and technical uncertainties. As a third group, the digital product passport claims a combination of physical and digital solutions with open questions on data ownership. The fourth and last group includes standards and certification systems that aim for maximum consensus with slow market implementation. To enable an integrated circular economy of plastics, plastic material tracking solutions must experience broad acceptance by all players along the value chain in the plastics industry and they should additionally be supported by society.
目前，塑料回收行业似乎只触及了其业务中容易实现的目标。要实现预期目标，需要付出更大努力并进行颠覆性创新。基于物理或数字信息的塑料材料追踪解决方案可以支持循环经济，并有助于克服价值链上的障碍。本文对基于信息追踪解决方案的四个不同技术领域的科学文献和举措进行了综述和分析。物理标记可以在短时间内提高分拣效率，但存在一些技术难题。区块链作为一个新概念，有望实现高透明度和安全性，但其缺点是验证能耗大且存在技术不确定性。作为第三类，数字产品护照主张将物理和数字解决方案相结合，但在数据所有权方面存在一些未解决的问题。第四类也是最后一类包括标准和认证系统，其目标是达成最大程度的共识，但在市场上的实施速度较慢。为了实现塑料的综合循环经济，塑料材料追踪解决方案必须得到塑料行业价值链上所有参与者的广泛认可，并且还应得到社会的支持。
