Characterization and Separation of Traditional and Bio-Plastics by Hyperspectral Devices

Nowadays, bio-plastics can contaminate conventional plastics sent to recycling. Furthermore, the low volume of bio-plastics currently in use has discourage the development of new technologies for their identification and separation. Technologies based on hyperspectral data detection may be profitably employed to separate the bio-plastics from traditional ones and to increase the quality of recycled products. In fact, sensing devices make it possible to accomplish the essential requirement of a mechanical recycling technology, i.e., end products which comply with specific standards determined by industrial applications. This paper presents the results of the hyperspectral analysis conducted on two different plastic polymers (PolyEthylene Terephthalate and PolyStyrene) and one bio-based and biodegradable plastic material (PolyLactic Acid) in different phases of their life cycle (primary raw materials and urban waste). The reflectance analysis is focused on the near-infrared region (900-1700 nm) and data are detected with a linear-spectrometer apparatus and a spectroradiometer. A rapid and reliable identification of three investigated polymers is achieved by using simple two near-infrared wavelength operators employing key wavelengths.