Recycling of Post‐Consumer HDPE Drug Packaging with Banana Pseudostem Fiber

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Summary As the life expectancy of the population increases, the quantity of solid waste produced has also risen. There is therefore a clear need to recycle materials, particularly polymers, and it is very important to reduce the time taken for materials to degrade after they have been discarded. The objective of this study was to develop a composite material from a mixture of waste drug packaging made from HDPE and fiber from the pseudostems of banana plants. A series of experiments were conducted to determine the characteristics of this compound, including tests of its mechanical properties, analyses with scanning electron microscopy and infrared spectroscopy, and tests of biodegradability and ecotoxicity. The infrared analysis showed that the compound was free from chemical groups that could indicate contamination by medications. The biodegradability assessment showed that the HDPERC5 compound took 28% less time to degrade after use was than the post‐consumer HDPE (HDPER). The HDPERC5 compound exhibited the best results for possible use for production of domestic utilities, in addition to a shorter degradation time if its final disposal destination were to be a landfill.

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