• Resources Recycling
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.70-79
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• 2014

In this study, waste polypropylene and waste ground rubber tire(WGRT) composites were prepared by using a modular intermeshing co-rotating twin screw extruder. The effect of three main factors such as WGRT contents, particle size, compatibilizers on the properties of waste PP/WGRT composites was extensively investigated. Tensile strength of the composites was decreased with an increase in WGRT contents, whereas elongation at break and impact strength were increased. The tensile strength, elongation at break and impact strength of the composites with the smaller size of the WGRT were more enhanced. Addition of PP-g-MA into waste PP/WGRT composites exhibited better tensile strength. However, elongation at break and impact strength were slightly decreased with increasing of PP-g-MA. On the other hand, tensile strength, impact strength and elongation at break of the composites were increased by adding the EPDM-g-MA and SEBS-g-MA. Especially, elongation at break was significantly increased compared to the composite with PP-g-MA.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.201-206
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• 1992

Annual amount of plastics waste including rubber and leather waste, generated in 1990 was about 2,600,000 tons. Amount of generation of plastics waste has rapidly increased, but fractions of recycling and incineration have gradually decreased. Recently, two-stage incinerator, consisting of gasifier and gas combustor, draws much attention in Korea. Plastics are gasified in the starved air condition in the gasifier and produced gas is fired in the combustor. Combustion of produced gas is much easier than that of solid plastics, and produces a little pollutants. Standardzation of technology and process automation are still needed, but this incineration technology is in the commercial stage. Next topic concerned with this two-stage incineration will be how to treat complex plastics waste including toxic substances generated from automobiles and household appliances. Pyrolysis, realized by indirect heating in inert atmosphere, can provide high-quality products with minimum emissions. Many plastics are easily decomposed into oil in pyrolysis conditions, which can be utilized as chemical feedstocks, or gasoline or kerosene depending on feed materials and operating conditions. This has been demonstrated in several pilot-scale tests performed in Japan, Germany, etc. Easy removal of HCl from PVC is one of the most decisive merits of pyrolysis process. But in general, further efforts should be made for the process to obtain marketability. The future of pyrolysis process depends on public concern about environmental problems and oil prices.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.58 no.1
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• pp.32-43
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• 2023

The worldwide use of polyurethane foam products generates large amounts of waste, which in turn has detrimental effects on the surroundings. Hence, finding an economical and environmentally friendly way to dispose of or recycle foam waste is an utmost priority for researchers to overcome this problem. In that sense, the glycolysis of waste flexible polyurethane foam (WFPF) from automotive seat cushions using different industrial-grade glycols and potassium hydroxide as a catalyst to produce recovered polyol was investigated. The effect of different molecular weight polyols, catalyst concentration, and material ratio (PU foam: Glycols) on the reaction conversion and viscosity of the recovered polyols was determined. The obtained recovered polyols are obtained as single or split-phase reaction products. Besides, the foaming characteristics and physical properties such as cell morphology, thermal stability, and compressive stress-strain nature of the regenerated flexible foams based on the recovered polyols were discussed. It was observed that the regenerated flexible foams displayed good seating comfort properties as a function of hardness, sag factor, and hysteresis loss compared to the reference virgin foam. With the growing demand for a sustainable and circular economy, a global valorization of glycolysis products from polyurethane scraps can be realized by transforming them into profitable substances.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.47 no.2
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• pp.129-140
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• 2012

The objective of this study was to estimate the practical recycling rate of plastic products, so that the study was conducted to build material flow diagram for PVC profile. For this objective, product generation, waste generation and recycling status were investigated. Using collected and analyzed status data, analysis of material flow by product and building material flow diagram were conducted. As result of estimating the recycling rate by product, The sum of domestic demand was 525,448 ton and waste generation was 105,853ton in PVC flooring and profile. The sum of generation of recycling product and raw material was investigated to be 76,004ton(14.46%), which is higher compared to recycling obligation(8.5%) in 2009. To build the material flow diagram in the years(5~20years) ahead, prediction of future demand was based on the assumption that there will be no difference in annual generation of current and future. As the recycling rate of flooring and profile increases, it is estimated to reach 20% in 2013 according to the material flow diagram.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.39-45
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• 2012

This paper investigates the strength characteristics and stress-strain behaviors of waste fishing net (WFN)-added lightweight soil. The lightweight soil, which consisted of dredged soil, crumb rubber, and cement, was reinforced with WFN in order to increase its shear strength. Glue treated WFN was also added to lightweight soil to improve the interlocking between the soil mixture and WFN. Three kinds of test specimens were prepared: unreinforced lightweight soil, reinforced lightweight soil without glue treatment, and reinforced lightweight soil with glue treatment. Several series of laboratory tests were carried out, including flow value tests, unconfined compression tests, and SEM analyses. From the experimental results, it was found that the peak strength of the reinforced lightweight soil with glue treatment was increased by the increased interlocking between the soil mixture and WFN, which was induced from the bonding effect. The stress-strain relation of the reinforced lightweight soil, irrespective of the glue treatment, showed a more ductile behavior than that of the unreinforced lightweight soil.

• Journal of the Korea Fashion and Costume Design Association
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.165-176
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• 2021

To solve environmental problems, research and efforts are required to reduce leather waste that is generated in large quantities during the leather manufacturing process. Leatherboard is a plate-like material that is made by crushing leather waste, such as trimming or shaving scraps and mixing fibers, pulp, rubber, and adhesives. The aim of this study is to provide basic data on the localization of leatherboard manufacturing technology for outsoles, which are increasingly in demand due to their excellent performance and price competitiveness. Interviews with experts and related organizations were conducted to investigate the related global technology trends. Also, the performance of three products that can be used as reference materials were evaluated and compared. As part of the research and efforts to reduce the amount of leather waste generated, high-performance materials using leather waste were developed and commercialized by major western companies. In Korea, various efforts have been made since 2000, and some companies have produced leatherboard for interior uses. However, the amount of waste recycled relative to that generated is not large due to the limited demand. Natural leather soles perform better than leatherboard soles in all evaluation aspects. In the case of leatherboard, performance varied by manufacturer. German products showed flexibility resistance and dimensional stability, thereby meeting performance requirements. However, abrasion resistance and cleavage resistance were slightly below the required performance standards, and research and development is needed to improve performance in those areas. Currently, it is impossible to evaluate the performance of domestic products due to underdevelopment. However, if the development of process technology continues based on the performance evaluation results of the best leatherboard in the shoe industry, materials for outsoles will be able to be produced domestically with prices competitiveness while realizing natural leather materials performance to some extent.

• Clean Technology
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.45-52
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• 1999

Recycling of red mud from the aluminium manufacturing process was investigated to be utilized as plastic fillers. High density polyethylene(HDPE), low density polyethylene(LDPE) and polypropylene(PP) were found to be the suitable plastic material for which red mud can be used as fillers. With the addition of red mud the plastic showed red brown color. As the ratio of amount of red mud to plastic increased, the tensile strength increased while the Izod impact strength decreased. About five percent of ethylene vinyl alcohol(EVA) was needed as an additive to prevent the lowering of impact strength. Maleic anhydride modified polypropylene was effective for reduction of impact strength lowering of PP. Mixed waste plastics containing LDPE, HDPE, PP, polystyrene and ABS could also accommodate red mud as fillers. In this case, significant loss in mechanical properties were observed due to immiscibility between the components. Ethylene propylene rubber(EPR) and styrene butadiene styrene block copolymer (SBS) could be used to improve the impact properties of the commingled waste plastics.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.115-121
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• 2000

In comparison with thermosetting rubber, thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) has various advantages such as simple processing, short cycle time and recycling of scrap. These advantages can lead to development of the high value-added rubber products due to reduction of the waste material, manufacturing cost and the defected product. This article involves a dynamic vulcanization method for EPDM/polypropylene blend, and the manufacturing of a fixed glass weather-strip by glass insert molding method using the blend. In order to investigate mechanical properties of the product, tensile strength, elongation, hardness and specific gravity were measured. Also morphological study was carried out using SEM. Developments of an efficient system of production and automatic process by molding of TPE and glass simultaneously are expected.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.131-141
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• 2004

The recycling of waste XLPE(crosslinked polyethylene), which is a major source of scraps from high voltage power transmission cables, has been discussed. The waste XLPE scraps were ground into fine powder with various sizes from less than $100{\mu}m$ up to about $1000{\mu}m$ using two types of tailor-made pulverizers. The compounds were prepared in a modular intermeshing co-rotating twin screw extruder at various conditions such as different compositions, types and powder sizes of waste XLPE, screw configurations and various polymer matrices (LDPE, HDPE, PP, PS). The mechanical and rheological properties and the fracture surface or the compounds were investigated. It was found that an improved impact strength was obtained from the compound with white XLPE powder pulverized from the scraps without outer/inner semi-conductive layers. Generally, the impact strength increases with the content of XLPE but decreases with the size of XLPE. Especially for LDPE, the extrusion was possible up to 80 wt% loading of XLPE. Also, the impact strength increases with the number of kneading disc blocks in the given screw configurations. The melt viscosity of the compounds increases with increasing XLPE loading. However, the higher shear thinning behavior of the compounds at common shear rates implies proper processibility of the compounds. In addition, the impact strength for other polymer matrices used increases with XLPE and it is noticeable that the impact strength of PS/XLPE (80/20 wt%) compound was improved twice that of pure PS.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.22-29
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• 2001

For a purpose of recycling of waste tires, composites of 10-60wt% recycled tire crumb blended with high density polyethylene(HDPE) were prepared, and their mechanical properties such as tensile strength, elongation at break, tensile modulus and impact strength were investigated as a function of tire crumb content. Ethylene-acrylic acid(EAA) copolymer was introduced by 10phr as a compatibilizer and the mechanical properties of the composites were measured. For the blend composition of 40wt% tire crumb content showing improved impact strength, the mechanical properties were measured by varying the EAA content of 5-15phr. All blends, whether modified or unmodified, showed a gradual improvement in impact strength as the tire crumb content increased, but the other properties decreased compared with the pure HDPE. In particular, the addition of EAA copolymer to the tire crumb content over 30wt% showed substantial improvement in impact strength. There was no significant effect of tire crumb size on impact strength of the composites.