Six Experts Discuss Innovations in Sustainable Products from Plastic Waste

In a recent Thermo Fisher Scientific webinar series titled “Sustainable Products from Plastic Waste”, six industry experts shared groundbreaking insights and research on improving recycling techniques and sustainable material development. The series focused on addressing the challenges of processing complex modern plastics and advancing circular economy goals by integrating analytical, mechanical, and chemical recycling methods.

Key Insights from the Experts

1. Understanding Plastic Waste Types – Dr. Madina Shamsuyeva

• Post-industrial vs. Post-consumer Waste: Post-industrial waste emerges during manufacturing, making it purer and easier to recycle. Post-consumer waste, generated after product use, contains more variability and contamination.
• Importance of Classification: Clear distinctions promote transparency and help set realistic recycling targets.

2. Polymer Rheology and the Weissenberg Effect – Dr. Ophélie Ranquet

• Analogy to Spaghetti: Polymers show a climbing effect (Weissenberg effect) similar to spaghetti climbing a rotating fork, which can distort rheological measurements.
• Mitigating Effects: Using oscillatory shear mode in measurements reduces inaccuracies caused by viscoelastic fluid behavior, enhancing data reliability.

3. Real-Time Analysis in Mechanical Recycling – Felix Mehrens & Niklas Rode

• Challenges with Recycled Materials: Recyclates often have inconsistent properties due to degradation and contamination, unlike uniform virgin polymers.
• Impact of Temperature: Raman spectra vary with temperature, influencing the accuracy of material composition prediction models during processing.

4. Recycling Marine Plastic Waste – Dr. Annika Völp

• Unique Challenges: Marine plastic waste is contaminated and degraded, complicating mechanical recycling.
• Blending with Virgin Polymers: Mixing marine waste with virgin low-density polyethylene can retain or improve recyclate thermal stability, emphasizing the need for careful sorting.

5. Hybrid Chemical-Mechanical Recycling – Professor João Maia

• Limitations of Chemical Recycling: Currently, chemical recycling is expensive, capacity-limited (~100,000 tons/year), energy-intensive, and sensitive to contamination.
• Hybrid Approach Benefits: Combining chemical and mechanical methods through reactive extrusion achieves higher throughput and improved polymer quality, addressing the feedstock variability problem.

Why This Matters

Modern plastics are chemically complex and widely used across industries, from packaging to automotive sectors. By leveraging innovative recycling technologies and precise analytical methods, these experts are guiding the development of more sustainable products from plastic waste, reducing environmental impact, and supporting the transition to a circular economy.

Further Learning

The full webinar series provides detailed presentations and Q&A sessions with specialists, offering valuable knowledge for researchers, manufacturers, and policymakers involved in sustainable materials and recycling innovation.

Watch the webinars now at Thermo Fisher Scientific’s platform | AZoM Article Link

Reference

Thermo Fisher Scientific – Materials Characterization. (2025, October 02). Six Experts Talk Sustainable Products from Plastic Waste. AZoM. Retrieved October 18, 2025.

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