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The recycling of plastic packaging wastes helps to alleviate the problems of white pollution and resource shortage. It is very necessary to develop high-value conversion technologies for plastic packaging wastes. To our knowledge, carbon materials with excellent properties have been widely used in energy storage, adsorption, water treatment, aerospace and functional packaging, and so on. Waste plastic packaging and biomass materials are excellent precursor materials of carbon materials due to their rich sources and high carbon content. Thus, the conversion from waste plastic packaging and biomass materials to carbon materials attracts much attention. However, closely related reviews are lacking up to now. In this work, the pyrolysis routes of the pyrolysis of plastic packaging wastes and biomass materials for conversion to high-value carbons and the influence factors were analyzed. Additionally, the applications of these obtained carbons were summarized. Furthermore, the limitations of the current pyrolysis technology are put forward and the research prospects are forecasted. Therefore, this review can provide a useful reference and guide for the research on the pyrolysis of plastic packaging wastes and biomass materials and the conversion to high-value carbon.

The transition to a circular economy (CE) in plastic packaging faces persistent barriers, including regulatory fragmentation, technological limitations, and supply chain disconnection. This study examines how multinational companies address these challenges by leveraging enablers such as advanced policies, technological innovation, and cross-sectoral collaboration. Based on a PRISMA-guided systematic review and a descriptive–explanatory case study, semi-structured interviews with senior managers were analyzed through thematic coding and data triangulation. Findings reveal that regulatory measures like virgin plastic taxation and post-consumer recycled material (PCR) incentives are effective only when synchronized with technical capacities. Investments in recycling infrastructure and circular design, such as resin standardization, enhance the quality of secondary materials, while local supply contracts and digital traceability platforms reduce volatility. Nevertheless, negative consumer perceptions and inconsistent PCR quality remain major obstacles. Unlike prior studies that examine barriers and enablers separately, this research develops an integrative framework where their interaction is conceptualized as a systemic and non-linear process. The study contributes to CE theory by reframing barriers as potential drivers of innovation and provides practical strategies, combining policy instruments, Industry 4.0 technologies, and collaborative governance to guide multinational firms in accelerating circular transitions across diverse regulatory contexts.

The management of plastic packaging waste is advancing quickly, and new strategies are being implemented worldwide for better resource recovery. To assess the environmental benefits of new ways of handling plastic packaging waste, we need to first evaluate current waste management options in order to create a basis for comparison. In this study, the environmental impacts of plastic packaging waste handling are assessed for the first time in Iceland using the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. The results show that mechanical recycling, despite including the impacts of exporting the waste to different European countries, has more environmental benefits than landfilling the waste in Iceland. Increasing the recycling rates of plastic waste in Iceland is also identified as a promising option from a resource efficiency perspective. With better waste sorting, Iceland can become more environmentally sustainable, ensuring that plastic materials land in recycling processes, and thereby enhancing the flow of material in the circular economy.

Small plastic packaging films make up a quarter of all packaging waste generated annually in Austria. As many plastic packaging films are multilayered to give barrier properties and strength, this fraction is considered hardly recyclable and recovered thermally. Besides, they can not be separated from recyclable monolayer films using near-infrared spectroscopy in material recovery facilities. In this paper, an experimental sensor-based sorting setup is used to demonstrate the effect of adapting a near-infrared sorting rig to enable measurement in transflection. This adaptation effectively circumvents problems caused by low material thickness and improves the sorting success when separating monolayer and multilayer film materials. Additionally, machine learning approaches are discussed to separate monolayer and multilayer materials without requiring the near-infrared sorter to explicitly learn the material fingerprint of each possible combination of layered materials. Last, a fast Fourier transform is shown to reduce destructive interference overlaying the spectral information. Through this, it is possible to automatically find the Fourier component at which to place the filter to regain the most spectral information possible.

Given their exceptional performance, plastic packaging products are widely used in daily life, and the dramatic expansion in plastic packaging waste (PPW) has exacerbated environmental problems. Many countries have enacted laws and developed recycling technologies to manage plastic packaging waste in consideration of the nature of PPW as both garbage and a resource. As the world’s largest producer and consumer of plastics, China has also taken measures to address this issue. This paper presents the latest management regulations and recycling strategies for PPW in China. Based on an analysis of the current management status of PPW and recycling technologies and their carbon emission impacts, some management suggestions and a comprehensive full-chain recycling process were put forward. We supposed that management challenges that need to be overcome in the future can be solved through the improvement of green designs for plastic packaging, manufacturing technology updates, consumption concept changes, and the high-value utilization of PPW. This paper aims to provide valuable references for government decisions on PPW management and, furthermore, to set up an economically sensible and industrially feasible PPW solution and boost the development of PPW recycling.

The application of paper–aluminum–plastic packaging has been widely adopted in various fields such as the food and medical industries, owing to its exceptional preservation and obstruction properties. Nonetheless, the recycling process for paper and aluminum from this packaging type typically involves water pulping and solvent separation. The resulting residual waste, commonly known as multi-plastic waste (PMW), poses significant challenges in terms of separation and recycling. In this research article, we propose a solution for the recycling of PMW using solid-state shear milling (S3M). This process utilizes powerful three-dimensional shear force to achieve pulverization and excellent dispersion of multicomponent polymers, all while maintaining ambient temperature conditions. The thermoplastic processability of milled PMW powder was improved. The results indicate that a significant reduction in the the average particle size of PMW from 700 μm to 226 μm after 10 milling cycles, as evidenced by both a particle size analyzer and SEM. Furthermore, S3M processing leads to a good dispersion of PMW domains, as confirmed by the reduction in domain size from 9.64 μm to 2.65 μm. DSC and DMA reveal excellent compatibility between the components of the composite, resulting in improved mechanical properties such as tensile stress (from 14.03 MPa to 22.02 MPa) and unnotched impact strength (from 3.26 KJ/m2 to 4.82 KJ/m2). The findings suggest that S3M technology could be an effective and sustainable method for recycling PMW without any separation process, with promising industrial application.

German retailers commit to promoting a circular economy (CE) to tackle the plastic crisis. Their strategies and perspectives on the role of consumers are qualitatively analyzed based on sustainability reports and press releases. Strategies include means of reduction and reuse but focus on recycling. Consumers are rather seen as barriers to realizing a CE.Environmental pollution caused by single-use plastic packaging waste is one of the major problems of our time. As a means of tackling environmental damage from plastic, many companies are voluntarily committing to promoting a sustainable use of plastic and the idea of a circular economy (CE). Among these companies, retailers play an interesting role. They are the point of sale of different manufacturers' products and, thus, are in direct contact with consumers. This paper qualitatively analyzes retailers' plastic strategies as published in sustainability reports and press releases. In particular, their understanding of the concept of a CE, their perspective on the CE-related role of consumers, and the consistency of their objectives regarding CE goals are investigated. The results indicate that there is a strong focus on recycling, although the retailers also consider means of reduction by avoidance and reuse. Consumers are rather seen as a barrier to implementing a circular economy at all three levels (reduction, reuse, recycling) and are assumed to need waste management education.

The widespread use of plastic packaging for storing, transporting, and conveniently preparing or serving foodstuffs is significantly contributing to the global plastic pollution crisis. This has led to many efforts directed toward amending plastic packaging’s end of life, such as recycling, or alternative material approaches, like increasingly using paper for food packaging. But these approaches often neglect the critical issue of chemical migration: When contacting foodstuffs, chemicals that are present in packaging transfer into food and thus unwittingly become part of the human diet. Hazardous chemicals, such as endocrine disrupters, carcinogens, or substances that bioaccumulate, are collectively referred to as “chemicals of concern.” They can transfer from plastic packaging into food, together with other unknown or toxicologically uncharacterized chemicals. This chemical transfer is scientifically undisputed and makes plastic packaging a known, and avoidable, source of human exposure to synthetic, hazardous, and untested chemicals. Here, I discuss this issue and highlight aspects in need of improvement, namely the way that chemicals present in food packaging are assessed for toxicity. Further, I provide an outlook on how chemical contamination from food packaging could be addressed in the future. Robust innovations must attempt systemic change and tackle the issue of plastic pollution and chemical migration in a way that integrates all existing knowledge.

Big wave surfer Kai Lenny and surfboard shaper John Pyzel join the journey, offering insights and challenging the problematic issue of single-use plastic in shipping surfboards around the world.

This quantitative investigation aims to test the model of responsible consumption behavior (RCB). The specific purpose is to examine the relationship of pro-environmental behavior, attitudes, norms, intention, and awareness using the theory of planned behavior as an underlying theoretical framework. A multistage sampling technique was used to select people (n = 665). Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire from sample respondents. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM)–partial least square (PLS). The findings revealed that attitudes, norms, and awareness all have a role in predicting the intention to engage in post-consumer plastic packaging activity. This finding supports the theory of planned behavior, and it can be extended to explain environmental behavior by adding a reasonable variable.