Efficient plastic recycling and remolding circular economy using the technology of trust–blockchain

Swikriti Khadke, Pragya Gupta, Shanmukh Rachakunta, Chandreswar Mahata, Suma Dawn, Mohit Sharma, Deepak Verma, Aniruddha Pradhan, Ambati Mounika Sai Krishna, Seeram Ramakrishna, Sabyasachi Chakrabortty, Gopalan Saianand, Prashant Sonar, Sajal Biring, Jatindra Kumar Dash, Goutam Kumar Dalapati

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

69 Scopus citations

Abstract

Global plastic waste is increasing rapidly. In general, densely populated regions generate tons of plastic waste daily, which is sometimes disposed of on land or diverged to sea. Most of the plastics created in the form of waste have complex degradation behavior and are non-biodegradable by nature. These remain intact in the environment for a long time span and potentially originate complications within terrestrial and marine life ecosystems. The strategic management of plastic waste and recycling can preserve environmental species and associated costs. The key contribution in this work focuses on ongoing efforts to utilize plastic waste by introducing blockchain during plastic waste recycling. It is proposed that the efficiency of plastic recycling can be improved enormously by using the blockchain phenomenon. Automation for the segregation and collection of plastic waste can effectively establish a globally recognizable tool using blockchain-based applications. Collection and sorting of plastic recycling are feasible by keeping track of plastic with unique codes or digital badges throughout the supply chain. This approach can support a collaborative digital consortium for efficient plastic waste management, which can bring together multiple stakeholders, plastic manufacturers, government entities, retailers, suppliers, waste collectors, and recyclers.

Original languageEnglish
Article number9142
JournalSustainability (Switzerland)
Volume13
Issue number16
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2021

Keywords

  • Blockchain
  • Circular economy
  • Circular premium
  • Digital badge
  • Machine learning
  • Plastic recycling
  • Supply chain

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