End-of-Life Plastics Management

End-of-life plastics present a significant challenge to achieving a sustainable economy. It is crucial to develop environmentally friendly technologies to process the waste streams beyond landfilling. This review provides a detailed overview of end-of-life plastics management, covering mechanical recycling, pyrolysis, and hydrocracking methods. Mechanical recycling is the predominant technique employed on a large scale in the recycling of end-of-life plastics, and this review discusses the techno-economic assessment and life cycle analysis of mechanical recycling. This review also summarizes key studies concentrating on chemical recycling techniques for handling end-of-life plastics. Among these, pyrolysis and hydrocracking are discussed in depth. Recent advancements and foundational of these two techniques are covered, highlighting their significance in tackling the plastic waste challenge. The prospects of scaling up pyrolysis and hydrocracking technologies are interpreted in terms of technical and economic feasibility. The discussion concludes with recommendations for future research to commercialize chemical recycling of end-of-life plastics.