funding for Invisible Markers to improve plastics recycling quality

The following “News Pickup” has been sent by our Australian Colleague (Hamed Ghajarnia) from Melbourne Australia:

Funding has been granted to a consortium from government innovations agency “Innovate UK” to identify new luminescent materials that can be applied invisibly to labels on plastics packaging, providing a low-cost sorting option for recyclables.

The project, “Plastic Packaging Recycling” using Intelligent Separation technologies for Materials (PRISM), has received £772,000 (US $1 million) of funding for over two years. Part of the funding is has also been provided by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.

The PRISM venture will create fluorescent materials from novel metal oxides as well as converting reprocessed powders from recycled fluorescent lamps into suitable fluorescent materials.

The fluorescent marking technology is one of the most important developments in sorting in decades, according to recycling consultancy and lead partner in the project Nextek, a plastic recycling consultancy.

“This could be the equivalent of an invisible barcode for plastics recycling. It is a significant step forward in the sub-categorization of plastics which are sorted automatically at high speed,” said Edward Kosior, Managing Director of Nextek. “It enables new initiatives from brand-owners eager to recover their packaging as part of the circular economy. Of course, it also provides a massive impetus for new businesses in the recycling sector.”

Please read the complete news from its “Source“

Also the following links may help you to know more

https://grants.innovateuk.org/

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/innovate-uk

https://www.gov.uk/search?q=Plastic+Packaging+Recycling

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News Pickup verified and Wired by:

Hamed Ghajarnia

PIMI Australian News Correspondent