Paths to circularity for plastics in the United States

Hendrickson, Thomas P.; Bose, Baishakhi; Vora, Nemi; Huntington, Tyler; Nordahl, Sarah L.; Helms, Brett A.; Scown, Corinne D.

doi:10.1016/j.oneear.2024.02.005

Title: Paths to circularity for plastics in the United States

Journal Article · 15 March 2024 · One Earth

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2024.02.005 · OSTI ID:2462719

Hendrickson, Thomas P. ^[1]; Bose, Baishakhi ^[1]; Vora, Nemi ^[2]; Huntington, Tyler ^[3]; Nordahl, Sarah L. ^[4]; Helms, Brett A. ^[5];

^[6]

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Amazon, Seattle, WA (United States)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), Emeryville, CA (United States)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); University of California, Berkeley, CA (United States)
Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), Emeryville, CA (United States); Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), Emeryville, CA (United States); Energy & Biosciences Institute, Berkeley, CA (United States)

In 2019, the United States consumed over 57 million metric tons (MMT) of plastic with less than 7% recovered for reuse. This study provides an updated material flow analysis at national and regional scales for all durable and single-use plastics in the United States. From this material flow analysis, we develop a series of alternative future national plastic flow scenarios that envision a scale-up of recycling technologies, incorporating technical limitations and sorting infrastructure constraints. The results suggest that a maximum of 68% (24 MMT) of plastic waste could be diverted from landfills by scaling up existing commercial recycling technologies. Based on the current technological landscape, reaching near-zero waste is only possible if processes that are operating at pilot and laboratory scales can be effectively scaled and coupled with improved sorting infrastructure. Through these scenarios with increased recycling, the availability of postconsumer resin stocks could increase by 22–43 MMT.

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Research Organization:: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Materials Sciences & Engineering Division (MSE); USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Office of Sustainable Transportation. Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO); USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Energy Efficiency Office

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-05CH11231

OSTI ID:: 2462719

Journal Information:: One Earth, Journal Name: One Earth Journal Issue: 3 Vol. 7; ISSN 2590-3322

Publisher:: Cell PressCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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