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PET project to cut virgin plastic use
Why in news?
- Global sportswear giant Adidas aims at eliminating the use of virgin plastics in its products by 2024.
- For this it has asked for help from a Maharashtra-based firm the only one of its kind in the country to produce yarn out of discarded PET bottles.
More in news
- What is virgin plastic?(1) Virgin Plastic, is the resin produced directly from the petrochemical feed-stock, such as natural gas or crude oil, which has never been used or processed before.
- What is PET?(1) PET is short for Polyethylene Terephthalate.(2) PET is the most common thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and is used in fibres for clothing, containers for liquids and foods etc.(3) Plastic bottles made from PET are widely used for soft drinks.
- Converting PET to polyester yarn:(1) Factory set up in Nashik deploys a unique technology to break down used PET (short for PolyethyleneTerephthalate) bottles and convert them into polyester filament yarn.(2) This technology allows for breaking down used PET bottles to the base product an ester, which is then used to manufacture yarn.
- Issue of Downcycling:(1) Downcycling is reuse of waste in a manner that the recycled product is of lower value than the original material.(2) PET material collection rate in India is nearly 80% — among the best in the world.(3) But a good portion of these bottles are downcycled, which eliminates the possibility of further recycling.
- Upcycling process energy efficient:(1) Reuse of discarded plastic in such a way as to create a product of higher quality or value than the original.(2) The upcycling process consumes 86% less water and 75% less energy than conventional manufacturing, but costs approximately 10% more.(3) A key area where costs can be reduced is curbing the level of contamination in PET bottles.
Source
The hindu.