Zarezadeh Elnaz, Tangestani Mahbubeh, Jafari Ahmad Jonidi
Research Center for Environmental Health Technology, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Heliyon. 2024 Nov 27;10(23):e40724. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e40724. eCollection 2024 Dec 15.
Today, plastic plays a pervasive role in everyday life. Their improper disposal can create ongoing environmental challenges. Polyurethane (PU) is a polymer with elastomeric properties that exhibits significant adhesion and durability. PU has various colors and resistance to acid and alkali substances. The widespread use of PU has caused a significant presence of these compounds in landfills. Therefore, it can cause significant plastic pollution globally. This increased environmental concern has prompted researchers and innovators to explore sustainable methods for recycling PU foam. Therefore, the recycling of PU waste is recognized as an essential requirement due to its economic and environmental benefits. Although the latest reviews focused on physical, chemical, and biological methods of PU recycling, a comprehensive review of other PU recycling methods is needed. Therefore, the present study is a systematic review of recent initiatives and innovations in the field of recycling and modification of PU foam production methods to recognize and reduce environmental impacts. In the present study, major global databases such as Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and Iranian databases (up to January 2024) were searched with relative keywords to identify studies published in authoritative journals. Data were collected from qualified articles on different PU recycling methods and innovative processes. From a total of 1088 articles found, finally, 46 studies met the objectives and inclusion criteria. Based on the results, today various methods are used to recycle PU compounds, but more attention has been paid to efficient methods such as energy production and high-consumption products such as rubber and adhesive from these compounds. In addition, it highlights some approaches, such as the production of absorbents from PU foams, which not only improve the current technology but also show promise in reducing the environmental impact of this ubiquitous material.
如今，塑料在日常生活中扮演着无处不在的角色。其处置不当会带来持续的环境挑战。聚氨酯（PU）是一种具有弹性体特性的聚合物，具有显著的粘附性和耐久性。PU有多种颜色，且耐酸碱物质。PU的广泛使用导致这些化合物大量存在于垃圾填埋场。因此，它会在全球造成严重的塑料污染。这种日益增加的环境问题促使研究人员和创新者探索回收PU泡沫的可持续方法。因此，由于其经济和环境效益，PU废料的回收被视为一项基本要求。尽管最新的综述聚焦于PU回收的物理、化学和生物方法，但仍需要对其他PU回收方法进行全面综述。因此，本研究是对PU泡沫生产方法回收和改性领域近期举措与创新的系统综述，以认识并减少环境影响。在本研究中，使用相关关键词搜索了Web of Science、PubMed、Scopus、谷歌学术等主要全球数据库以及伊朗数据库（截至2024年1月），以识别在权威期刊上发表的研究。从不同PU回收方法和创新工艺的合格文章中收集数据。在总共找到的1088篇文章中，最终有46项研究符合目标和纳入标准。基于研究结果，如今有多种方法用于回收PU化合物，但更多关注的是高效方法，如从这些化合物中生产能源以及高消耗产品，如橡胶和粘合剂。此外，它还突出了一些方法，比如用PU泡沫生产吸收剂这种方法，不仅改进了现有技术，而且在减少这种普遍存在材料的环境影响方面也展现出前景。
