Possibility of recycling plastics from municipal solid waste (MSW) and their potential applications in construction industry

Abstract

The rate of resource consumption today is more than the rate of generation in natural resources. In developing countries, municipal solid waste (MSW) is a growing problem due to heterogeneous composition, non-biodegradability of plastic waste, lack of recycling facilities, high cost of waste collection, transportation and management and the environmental problems arising from the dumping of waste. Plastics widely used in the food packaging industry. The waste of growing plastics in urban areas presents health and environmental problems. . Construction materials play a key role in construction projects. At the moment, most of the projects focus on the development of construction materials that use waste. The objective of this article is to review the possibility of recycling the plastics that are generated in the MSW and its possible applications in the construction industry. This paper discusses the composition of MSW and plastic waste components in Sri Lanka. Primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary technologies are considered for the recycling of plastic waste and plastic waste applications in the development of innovative construction materials. The use of municipal waste generated in Sri Lanka for the manufacture of construction materials will help reduce the problems associated with waste in the country. As a sustainable solution to this problem, the development of construction material with waste material is a possible option to address this problem. Recycling can be beneficial, since its energy efficiency reduces the waste generated, reduces the problems related to waste in the country, and studies have investigated the use of waste for construction in the industry.