The analysis - conducted by researchers in the Bottle Consortium, including representatives from the US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the University of Portsmouth - identified that using enzymes could be a more sustainable approach for recycling polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a type of plastic commonly used to manufacture single-use beverage bottles, clothing and food packaging, all of which are increasingly relevant in addressing the environmental challenge of plastic pollution.
The new research addresses the challenges of plastic recyclability. While images of discarded bottles floating in oceans and other waterways provide a visual reminder of the problems posed by plastic waste, the lesser-seen issue remains of what to do with the PET used to manufacture in more obscure applications.
PET ranks among the most abundantly produced synthetic polymers in the world, with 82 million metric tonnes produced...