CATALYTIC PYROLYSIS OF DISCARDED COVID-19 MASKS OVER SEPIOLITE

This research aims to develop a new strategy to valorize wasted COVID-19 masks based on pyrolysis to convert them into useful products. First, surgical and FFP2 masks were thermally pyrolyzed at temperatures of 450–550 ºC with the purpose of determining gas, liquid (oil) and solid (char) yields. At low temperatures, solid yield was high, while at high temperatures the gas product was enhanced. The highest yield of liquid was found at an operating temperature of 500 ºC in both surgical and FPP2 masks pyrolysis. The liquid product yields were 59.08% and 58.86%, respectively. Then, the volatiles generated during thermal pyrolysis of residual masks were cracked over sepiolite as catalyst at a temperature of 500 ºC. The catalytic pyrolysis increased the yield of gas product (43.89% against 39.52% for surgical masks and 50.53% against 39.41% for FFP2 masks) and decreased the viscosity of the liquid product. Finally, the effect of sepiolite regeneration and reuse in consecutive pyrolysis tests was examined. Results showed that, with the higher regeneration-reuse of sepiolite, the catalyst was degraded obtaining a liquid product with higher molecular mass. This effect was hardly noticeable in the case of FFP2 masks. © 2022 International Multidisciplinary Scientific Geoconference. All rights reserved.

Emerging COVID waste and its impact on the aquatic environment in India

A highly transmissible and pathogenic Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has caused the COVID-19 pandemic, which severely affected human health and impacted negatively on the environment. In this review, we discuss the extent of the generation of COVID waste, and how its disposal can influence the environment. We have especially emphasized the COVID-related biomedical waste management. An attempt has also been made to identify several challenges encountered in India. Studies have indicated an altered water usage pattern, which increased megacities' water footprint in India. Enhanced domestic sewage discharge resulted in higher fecal coliform count in water bodies. Disposal of COVID biomedical waste (CBW) and personal protective equipment (PPE) resulted in a huge amount of single-use plastics (SUPs);which in turn cause the long-term risk of micro- and nano-plastic in the environment. This review also aims to put up the need for well-equipped infrastructure, efficient treatment facility, and public availability of CBW data in India to make effective policies and sustainable solutions for long-term goals. © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Microplastics from face masks: A potential hazard post Covid-19 pandemic.

The tremendous use of plastic products to averse the infection rate during Covid-19 pandemic has developed great pressure on the management and disposal systems of plastic waste. The compulsory use of face masks to curb the infection and prevent transmission of the virus has led to addition of millions of face masks into the terrestrial and marine environment. The current study attempts to assess and quantify the rate of infection in coherence with the annual usage of face masks in various nations across the globe. The ecological footprint of the plastic waste generated from used and discarded face masks along with their potential impacts have also been discussed. The current study has quantified the total annual face masks across thirty-six nations to be more than 1.5 million ton. The total estimated figure for annual plastic waste and microplastics in all these nations was ∼4.2 million tonnes and 9774 thousand tonnes, which emerges as a great threat to the global efforts towards reduction of plastic usage. The emergence of Covid-19 pandemic has modified the living habits with new enterprises being set up for Covid essential products, but the associated hazard of these products has been significantly ignored. Hence this study attempts to present a quantitative baseline database towards interpretation and understanding of the hazards associated with microplastics and increased dependence on plastic products.

Novel polymer composite coated with ethylcellulose nanoparticle from waste paper as an alternative material to extracorporeal oxygenation membrane

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenator (ECMO) is a valuable technology to support people with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and is recommended for COVID-19 patients. This study aims to fabricate polymer-based composite membranes coated with ethylcellulose nanoparticles from waste paper and identify the performance of the composite as ECMO candidates. Composite membranes were made from four types of polymers, namely, nylon, PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), Pebax® MH-1657, and SBS (poly-(styrene-b-butadiene-b-styrene)). PDMS (polydimethylsiloxane) 1 wt.% and ethylcellulose nanoparticles (3% and 10 wt.%) were used as membrane coatings to increase their hydrophobic properties. The success of cellulose isolation and ethylcellulose synthesis from waste paper was confirmed by the FTIR and XRD analysis. The size of the synthesized ethylcellulose nanoparticles was 32.68 nm. The coating effect on composite membranes was studied by measuring the contact angle, membrane porosity, protein quantification tests, and single gas permeation of O2 and CO2. Based on the protein quantification test, the protein could not pass through the Pebax/PDMS and SBS/PDMS composites coated with 10 wt.% ethylcellulose;this indicated less risk of plasma leakage. The gas permeation test on nylon/PDMS, PTFE/PDMS, and SBS/PDMS composites coated with 10% ethylcellulose resulted high CO2/O2 selectivity, respectively, 2.17, 3.48, and 3.22 as good indication for extracorporeal oxygenation membrane.

A novel circular approach to analyze the challenges associated with micro-nano plastics and their sustainable remediation techniques.

The mismanagement of consumer-discarded plastic waste (CDPW) has raised global environmental concerns about climate change. The COVID-19 outbreak has generated ∼1.6 million tons of plastic waste per day in the form of personal protective equipment (masks, gloves, face shields, and sanitizer bottles). These plastic wastes are either combustible or openly dumped in aquatic and terrestrial environments. Open dumping upsurges emerging contaminants like micro-nano plastics (MNPs) that directly enter the ecosystem and cause severe impacts on flora and fauna. Therefore, it has become an utmost priority to determine sustainable technologies that can degrade or treat MNPs from the environment. The present review assesses the sources and impacts of MNPs, various challenges, and issues associated with their remediation techniques. Accordingly, a novel sustainable circular model is recommended to increase the degradation efficiency of MNPs using biochemical and biological methods. It is also concluded that the proposed model does not only overcome environmental issues but also provides a sustainable secondary resource to meet the sustainable development goals (SDGs).

Microplastic pollution and associated health hazards: Impact of COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to an increase in plastic used for medical purposes such as personal protective equipment and packaging materials. A very low share of plastics is recycled while the majority is sent to landfills. This plastic may degrade over time to form microplastics which may pollute land, air, and water sources. An increase in microplastics can increase the disease risk in human well-being's. The ultimate fate of microplastic is accumulation inside the human body posing the risk of different health conditions like cancer, diabetes, and allergic reactions. Hence, proper detection and disposal methods should be devised to deal with the rise in microplastic pollution.

Impact of Vehicular Traffic on Single Use Surgical Face Masks as a Source of Environmental Micro-fiber Pollution

During the COVID-19 pandemic large numbers of single-use, surgical style face masks were lost or discarded in public spaces, primarily in on public streets and car parking settings. Many of these masks were blown onto the road surfaces where they were subjected to degradation through the tire impact of passing vehicle traffic. As series of field observations as well as experimental simulations show that the three-ply polypropylene mask fabric is subjected to shear forces when compressed between the tire and the road surface. The mechanical action breaks the bonds between the fibers (both spunbonded and meltblown) leading to a continual shedding of microfibers. Wind disperses these into the environment along road sides, while surface water action moves them into stormwater drains and from there into the waterways. As the decay is rapid, municipal agencies only have a short window of time to remove stray face masks from the urban environment if micro-fiber pollution is to be reduced.

The energy assessment of COVID-19 medical waste as a potential fuel

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused huge health and economic damages. Various protective face masks, such as single-use, cotton, and the most widespread FFP2 or KN95 masks, are used to prevent the spread of this virus. However, these face masks are usually packaged in plastic packaging, which increases the amount of plastic waste. Plastic gloves are also often used in the connection of the pandemic. All this leads to a large production of protective equipment, but their use contributes to the increase of this type of waste, which presents a new challenge in waste management. This article investigates a complete element analysis of these mentioned materials and observes potential harmful substances. Further, pellets, as a potential fuel for combustion or pyrolysis purposes, were produced with the content of 5% and 10% of face masks. FFP2 were firstly separated from ear straps and wires, then disintegrated, added to spruce sawdust, and compressed into pellets. A series of experiments were realized and aimed at elemental, thermogravimetric, and calorific value analyses of produced pellets. Based on the results, it can be concluded that the presence of face masks FFP2 in pellets increases the content of carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen, volatile matter, and calorific values, but decreases the content of fixed carbon. According to elemental analysis of produced pellets, no significant amounts of harmful elements were found. © 2023 The Author(s)

A review of plastic pollution and their treatment technology: A circular economy platform by thermochemical pathway

The rapid expansion of plastic manufacturing industries in last several decades has brought serious concerns over the environmental impacts of plastic wastes. Recent outbreak of Covid-19 drastically increased production, use, and disposal of plastic products. Current management strategies for wasted plastics still rely on landfill and incineration that continue to exacerbate plastic pollution and carbon emissions. Many countries have put forward multifaceted administrative efforts to reduce plastic wastes, but the annual global generation of plastic wastes is still increasing. In techno-society, researchers have been exploring more effective plastic wastes treatment technologies to alleviate environmental impacts of plastic wastes. Such efforts entailed several technical options that can potentially contribute to establishing a circular economy for plastics. Thermochemical process is a prominent example of such techniques. This review presents an overview of the issue of plastic pollution, covering topics including global plastic production, environmental impacts, and toxicity. In addition, the global administrative efforts aimed at reducing plastic pollution are discussed, as well as detection and treatment strategies to establish a circular economy in plastic management. © 2023 Elsevier B.V.

CHANGING LANDSCAPE OF PLASTIC WASTE MANAGEMENT IN INDIA

Plastic waste is one of the long-standing global issues in the recent era. Unfortunately, India is one of the countries which has been affected by the mismanagement of the use of plastics. India has recorded a substantial growth in the production of plastic and is considered a country of increased consumption of plastic. Due to the absence of an appropriate waste collection and segregation process, it has created the major issue of waste management and discarded used plastic items used for packaging application. There are various plastic waste management laws and programmes that have a cascading effect on almost every sector of business. In 2016, two years after the new union government took power in New Delhi, The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has made some improvements in rules for the collection, segregation, processing, treatment and disposal of the waste. In the pandemic era, effective plastic waste management became more important than ever. The COVID-19 pandemic has created an increased demand for single-use plastic because of pressure on the already out-of-control global plastic waste problem. It is recorded to be large, and the magnitude of this pandemic related to mismanaged plastic waste is unknown. However, understanding the changing landscape and alarming need for effective plastic waste management, the government of India has proposed certain changes to prohibit imports, handling, manufacturing and use of single-use plastics in the country. This is in line with the government's intent to phase out single-use plastic by 2022. Considering this, this chapter highlights the changes in the rules and regulations in India related to plastic waste management and its effects on various sectors of business. © 2023 by Emerald Publishing Limited.

Recycling of Plastic Polymer: Reinforcement of Building Material Using Polymer Plastics of Used COVID-19 Syringes

Plastic waste causes severe environmental impacts worldwide and threatens the lives of all creatures. In the medical field, most of the equipment, especially personal protective equipment (PPE), is made from single-use plastic. During COVID-19, the usage of PPE has increased, and is disposed of in landfills after being used once. Worldwide, millions of tons of waste syringes are generated from COVID-19 vaccination. A practical alternative to utilizing this waste is recycling it to reinforce building materials. This research introduces an approach to using COVID-19 syringe plastic waste to reinforce building material as composite concrete. Reinforced fiber polymer (FRP) concrete materials were used to mold cylindrical specimens, which underwent mechanical tests for mechanical properties. This study used four compositions with 0%, 5%, 10%, and 15% of FRP to create cylindrical samples for optimum results. Sequential mechanical tests were carried out on the created samples. These specimens were cured for a long period to obtain water absorption capability. After several investigations, the highest tensile and compressive strengths, approximately 2.0 MPa and 10.5 MPa, were found for the 5% FRP composition samples. From the curing test, the lowest water absorbability of around 5% was found for the 5% FRP composition samples.

A Review on the Recycling Technologies of Fibre-Reinforced Plastic (FRP) Materials Used in Industrial Fields

Fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) materials are attracting growing interest because of their high specific mechanical properties. These characteristics, in addition to a high level of tailorability and design of freedom, make them attractive for marine, aerospace, automotive, sports and energy applications. However, the large use of this class of material dramatically increases the amount of waste that derives from end-of-life products and offcuts generated during the manufacturing processes. In this context, especially when thermosetting matrices are considered, the need to deeply study the recycling process of FRPs is an open topic both in academic and industrial research. This review aims to present the current state of the art of the most affirmed recycling technologies used for polymeric composites commonly used in industrial applications, such as carbon and glass FRPs. Each recycling method (i.e., chemical, thermal and mechanical) was analysed in terms of technological solutions and process parameters required for matrix dissolution and fibre recovery, showing their advantages, drawbacks, applications and properties of the recycled composites. Therefore, the aim of this review is to offer an extensive overview of the recycling process of polymeric composite materials, which is useful to academic and industrial researchers that work on this topic.

Plastics and the coronavirus pandemic: A behavioral science perspective

With the coronavirus outbreak, new and strengthened norms of plastic dependency emerged in the Middle East and North Africa region through the desperate demand for products like face masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE), highlighting the tradeoffs between health and the environment. While the rise in demand has been considered as temporary, behavioral barriers and misperceptions might make these norms particularly sticky and hinder society's ability to transition to a circular economy. Fortunately, behavioral science offers valuable insights about why the current pandemic can actually be a catalyst to create new eco-conscious behaviors. As some behaviors are often strenuous to change and require enforcement through traditional policy solutions (e.g. regulations), behavioral science offers complementary tools that will make policies more effective. We have an opportunity to start thinking about ways to leverage behavioral insights to create new norms that promote a circular economy while ultimately ensuring proper adherence to hygiene practices to curb the spread of the virus. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Circular Economy and Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 17: The Case of the PlastiCity Ecosystem

Plastic pollution is one of the most severe environmental and human health threats. Based on a linear model, our current economic system uses plastics as a primary resource to make products such as plastic bags and bottles. However, these products are not recycled into secondary resources. Instead, they are thrown away when they become unusable. In contrast, the circular economy considers plastic waste as an opportunity to create social, economic and environmental value. This model uses plastic waste as a raw material to produce new items. This research demonstrates that the circular economy contributes to Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 17 using the results of action and observatory research within the PlastiCity project. As part of PlastiCity, partners developed new products made from recycled plastic such as recycled face shields. This chapter describes our efforts in developing a business case for recycled face shields and deploying the PlastiCity ecosystem to improve collaboration and partnerships. This study suggests that the development of an ecosystem can facilitate collaboration between stakeholders in the plastic value chain and hence contribute to implementing circular business models. This research also demonstrates how the circular economy can respond rapidly to health-related societal challenges, such as the unavailability of personal protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Packaging plastic waste management in the cosmetic industry

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the relationship between the various variables present in the packaging plastic waste management system in the cosmetics industry.Design/methodology/approachIn this paper, the authors deal with plastic packaging waste in the cosmetic industry with the help of system dynamics. The model broadly divides the system into six sections – Cosmetic Packaging, Waste Generation, Waste Collected, Waste Sorted, Waste Treated and Waste Dumped. Businesses have been investing in each section depending on their progress and targets. The authors are looking at case studies of two leading cosmetic brands, L'Oréal and L'Occitane en Provence, to validate the industry practices against our model.FindingsFrom a business perspective, using the case study methodology for L'Oréal and L'Occitane, the authors inferred that out of the various investment vehicles available, companies are targeting technological advancement and third-party collaborations as they have the potential to offer the greatest visible change. However, most of these investments are going toward the treatment subsection. Still, there is a scope for improvement in the collection and sorting subsystems, increasing the efficiency of the whole chain.Originality/valueThere has been a lot of research on packaging plastic waste management in the past, but only a few of them focused on the cosmetic industry. This study aims to connect all the possible variables involved in the cosmetic industry's packaging plastic waste management system and provide a clear output variable for various businesses looking to manage their packaging waste because of their products efficiently.

Insights on the current status of effective strategies for waste management in COVID-19 pandemic: challenges and opportunities

A large number of people got infected and many lost their lives due to COVID-19. The increased volume and source-shuffling of the waste generated during the pandemic have challenged the current waste management facilities. The major sources of infectious waste not only include hospitals but also houses and quarantine facilities that lack in source-management thereby increasing the spread of the virus. This article focuses on waste collection and disposal techniques as major aspects of COVID-19 waste management. Also, it discusses the various waste disinfection technologies along with waste management strategies formulated by different organisations. The non-pharmaceutical intervention strategies have also been identified. Alongside this, various challenges and opportunities in COVID-19 waste management are reviewed. Accordingly, recommendations to achieve efficient waste management are stated. Waste management in case of such a pandemic requires proper segregation, storage, collection and treatment. Usage of multiple processes like pyrolysis, chemical treatment, microwave and radio wave is needed to be found for treatment of infectious waste. Increased amount of mixed waste creates the need to have method that is flexible enough. Large amount of PPE waste needs to be taken care of. Development of materials that can provide hygiene and have recyclability is essential. © 2023 Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers.

Photoredox-Catalyzed Plastic Waste Conversion: Nonselective Degradation versus Selective Synthesis

Plastic waste pollution is becoming one of the most pressing environmental crises due to the large-scale production without satisfactory recycling schemes, especially with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in recent years. Upcycling of plastic waste into valuable chemicals powered by solar energy presents a substantially untapped opportunity to turn waste into treasure. In this review, the fundamental principles from plastic nonselective degradation to selective synthesis are first clarified. Then, we aim to outline the representative recent advances in photoredox-based catalytic plastic waste conversion. Particular emphasis is placed on the valorization of plastic waste regarding nonselective degradation versus selective synthesis. Finally, we present challenges and individual insights for further exploration of the plastic waste conversion domain. It is anticipated that this timely and critical review would provide an instructive direction and foresight on the selective conversion of plastics to value-added chemical feedstocks, thus stimulating the development of a circular and sustainable plastic economy in the coming decades. © 2023 American Chemical Society.

Plastic waste management and safety disinfection processes for reduced the COVID-19 Hazards

In response to the pandemic of COVID-19, various unexpected environmental impacts in many countries have been rising. Millions of gloves and masks are used and thrown away daily around the globe. Incorrect disposal of COVID-19 waste without disinfection preparation could expose people and healthcare personnel to the possibility of spreading the infection of coronaviruses. This article finds an appropriate way to disinfect the waste of coronavirus-infected items by involving various physical factors, chemical and biological or physiological factors. Policymakers must immediately adopt disinfection technology to achieve green recovery of covid-19 waste that encourages development and sustains climate change. Regarding previously published papers and research results, this article intends to investigate the plastic pollution research status before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and outline safely disinfecting COVID-19 plastic waste. © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Assessment of relationship between aging and contaminant-carryover for different filter layer of surgical mask under urban environmental stressors

Abundant disposable surgical masks (SMs) remain in the environment and continue to age under urban environmental stressors. This study aimed to investigate the aging characteristics of SMs and the effect of different aged layers of SMs on phenanthrene (PHE), tylosin (TYL), and sulfamethazine (SMT) under two different urban environmental stressors (UV and ozone). The results show that UV exposure causes more severe aging of the SM layers than ozone. The middle layer, made of melt-brown fabric, has displayed the highest degree of aging due to its smaller diameter and mechanical strength. The two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS) analysis reveals the different aging sequences of functional groups and three layers in aged SMs under the two urban environmental stressors. Whether the SMs are aged or not, the adsorptions of three organic pollutants on SMs are positively correlated with the octanol-water partition coefficient. Furthermore, except for the dominant hydrophobic interaction, aged SMs can promote the adsorption of three organic pollutants by accessory interactions (hydrogen bonding and partition), depending on their structures. These findings highlight the environmental effects of new microplastic (MP) sources and coexisting pollutants under the influence of COVID-19, which is helpful in accurately evaluating the biological toxicity of SMs. © 2022 Elsevier B.V.

Upcycling disposable face masks into fuel range iso-alkanes through hydropyrolysis coupled with vapor-phase hydrocracking

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an alarming accumulation of plastic waste. Herein, an integrated hydropyrolysis and hydrocracking process was performed to upcycle disposable masks into fuel-range iso-alkanes over carbon supported ruthenium (Ru/C). Experimental results indicated that catalyst type significantly affected product distribution during the hydropyrolysis and vapor-phase hydrocracking of disposable masks. Compared with zeolites-induced catalytic cascade process where up to ∼25.9 wt% yield of aromatic hydrocarbons such as toluene and xylenes were generated, a ∼82.7 wt% yield of desirable iso-alkanes with a high C5–C12 gasoline selectivity of 95.5% was obtained over Ru/C under 550 °C hydropyrolysis temperature and 300 °C hydrocracking temperature at 0.2 MPa H2. The cascade hydropyrolysis and hydrocracking process also exhibited high adaptability and flexibility in upcycling single-use syringes, food packaging, and plastic bags, generating 79.1, 81.6, and 80.3 wt% yields of fuel range iso/n-alkanes, respectively. This catalytic cascade hydrotreating process provides an efficient and effective approach to convert pandemic-derived plastic waste into gasoline-range fuel products. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd