| Usage of PET | | | | Recycling companies will further treat the |
| PET is used as a raw material for making | | | | post-consumer PET by shredding the material into |
| packaging materials such as bottles and containers | | | | small fragments. These fragments still contain |
| for packaging a wide range of food products and | | | | residues of the original content, shredded paper |
| other consumer goods. Examples include soft | | | | labels and plastic caps. These are removed by |
| drinks, alcoholic beverages, detergents, cosmetics, | | | | different processes, resulting in pure PET |
| pharmaceutical products and edible oils. PET is one | | | | fragments, or "PET flakes". PET flakes are used |
| of the most common consumer plastics used. | | | | as the raw material for a range of products that |
| Process | | | | would otherwise be made of polyester. Examples |
| Recycling bins usually include one for glass and/or | | | | include polyester fibres (a base material for the |
| plastic bottles, such as this one in Singapore | | | | production of clothing, pillows, carpets, etc), |
| Post-consumer waste | | | | polyester sheets, strapping, or back into PET |
| The empty PET packaging is discarded by the | | | | bottles etc. |
| consumer after use and becomes PET waste. In | | | | Global statistics |
| the recycling industry, this is referred to as | | | | Worldwide, approximately 4.53 million tons of PET |
| "post-consumer PET." Many local governments | | | | were collected in 2007. This gave 3.64 million tons |
| and waste collection agencies have started to | | | | of flake. 2.6 million tons were used to produce |
| collect post-consumer PET separately from other | | | | fibre, 0.3 million tons to produce bottles, 0.37 |
| household waste. The collected post-consumer | | | | million tons to produce APET sheet for |
| PET is taken to recycling centres known as | | | | thermoforming, 0.17 million tons to produce |
| materials recovery facilities (MRF) where it is | | | | strapping tape and 0.12 million tons for |
| sorted and separated from other materials such | | | | miscellaneous applications. (Source: PCI) |
| as metal, objects made out of other rigid plastics | | | | Petcore, the European trade association that |
| such as PVC, HDPE, polypropylene, flexible plastics | | | | fosters the collection and recycling of PET, |
| such as those used for bags (generally low | | | | reported that in Europe alone, 1.26 million tonnes |
| density polyethylene), drink cartons, and anything | | | | of PET bottles were collected in 2008 - more |
| else which is not made out of PET. | | | | than 46% of all bottles. After exported bales |
| Sorting | | | | were taken into account, 0.803 million tons of PET |
| Post-consumer PET is often sorted into different | | | | flake were produced. 0.36 million tons were used |
| colour fractions: transparent or uncoloured PET, | | | | to produce fibres, 0.163 million tons to produce |
| blue and green coloured PET, and the remainder | | | | more bottles, 0.177 million tons to produce APET |
| into a mixed colours fraction. The emergence of | | | | sheets, 0.088 million tons for strapping tape and |
| new colours (such as amber for plastic beer | | | | 0.012 million tons for miscellaneous applications. |
| bottles) further complicates the sorting process | | | | (Source: PCI for Petcore) |
| for the recycling industry. | | | | Re-use of PET bottles |
| Processing for sale | | | | PET bottles are also recycled as-is (re-used) for |
| Bales of crushed PET bottles | | | | use in solar water disinfection in developing |
| This sorted post-consumer PET waste is crushed, | | | | nations, in which empty PET bottles are filled with |
| pressed into bales and offered for sale to | | | | water and left in the sun to allow disinfection by |
| recycling companies. Transparent post-consumer | | | | ultraviolet radiation. PET is useful for this purpose |
| PET attracts higher sales prices compared to the | | | | because most other materials (including glass) that |
| blue and green fractions. The mixed colour | | | | are transparent to visible light are opaque to |
| fraction is the least valuable. | | | | ultraviolet radiation. |
| Further treatment | | | | |