Chemical recycling of polyesters

Abstract

In the presented paper, two basic strategies that can be used in the processes of chemical recycling of polyester material were described. The first of them involves increasing the molar mass of recycled materials in the solid-state polycondensation (SSP) process and/or joining their chains with various types of substances easily reacting with the end groups of polyesters (so-called extending agents). The essence of the second strategy is the degradation of the material under the influence of various protogenic agents (such as water, alcohols, glycols and amines) to obtain low-molecular products or oligomers that can be used as raw materials in the synthesis of many classes of polymers. The methods that are already used in PET [poly(ethylene terephthalate)] recycling and the possibility of their extension to other types of polyesters are both shown.