A Review Study on Advancements in the Recycling Methods of Polyethylene terephthalate

Abstract

Recycling polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is of pivotal importance, as the bulk of PET waste generated is rising rapidly due to the wide variety of its applications. This has given rise to growing awareness and concern for the ever-increasing environmental pollution. To manage this waste, there has been significant improvement in various methods of polymer recycling, particularly in chemical recycling methods. This review provides an in-depth analysis of PET recycling methods including primary, mechanical, chemical, and energetic recycling. It also provides a detailed view of the effect of the new advanced catalysts on the future advancements in chemical recycling especially in glycolysis to improve the process efficiency and to make it economically feasible. Further, this article presents the alternative methods like nanotechnology as well as the utilization of enzymes for overcoming limitations of the prevailing methods and highlights the efforts made in these upcoming fields for enhancing the quality of the end product obtained by recycling PET waste.