Page 48 - Green Builder Magazine Nov-Dec 2017 Issue

Overcoming example, a 10-year study of vinyl siding that started in 1994 (VS4W)

looked at the “color ellipsoid” of installed product, not whether it
Recycling Hurdles became brittle, warped or caused any moisture damage to sheathing.
Too often, the really big questions are ignored, skipped or buried
in dense academic research that’s indecipherable to anyone but a
The key challenge is sifting and chemist and/or engineer.
Plastics behave differently as the temperature increases. Each
separating different types of plastics. has different tensile strength and load-bearing ability at specific
temperatures. These are key factors in determining how and where
plastic-based materials can be used in construction.
Fortunately, the ASTM (previously known as the American
Society for Testing and Materials) has been proactive in developing
standards for recycled plastic lumber (RPL), primarily for decking (D
6662). During this process, the organization identified and attempted
to remedy missing info and specs. Here are some key takeaways:
Dimensional Tolerances: Tolerance limits were established that
would meet industry requirements and performance considerations.
Creep: The viscoelastic nature of RPL makes it susceptible to
creep at sustained loads at elevated temperatures. A methodology
was developed to use creep data per ASTM D 6112 to define design
limits to avoid excessive deflection and creep in the decking boards.
Flammability: ASTM’s fire test method uses a small ignition
source, as might be expected on a deck, when hot charcoal briquettes
from a tipped over barbecue grill make contact.
The ugly truth. Although efforts to improve recycling rates Allowable Material Properties for Structural Design: A complete
continue, production of plastic far outpaces recycling. methodology was presented in the standard to determine allowable
maximum span lengths for decking boards based on the material
EALTHY BUILDING NEWS (http://bit.ly/2hguSeI) reports properties determined from the test methods listed above.
that with regard to polyethylene, “proportionally less ‘good
material’ is coming out of the plastic waste recycling stream EYES-OPEN ENGINEERING
H due to the rising use of municipal single-stream recycling Like any building material, plastics must be able to withstand the
over the past decade. Mixed- and low-quality scrap materials that come rigors of their intended use. Standards such as those devised by
from single-stream recycling centers are more likely to be exported than ASTM answer many of those questions. But here’s the scoop in
sorted and screened for high-quality polyethylene scrap. As a result, more layman’s terms:
recovered plastic bags are exported than processed domestically.” Some plastics get soft at relatively low temperatures. For example:
The Healthy Building Network’s efforts to optimize recycling track how the HDPE, the plastic used in most milk jugs, begins to soften at 172°F under
building industry is doing. They note that the plastic lumber sector, unlike the low stress, but about 114.8°F under high stress. (See chart.)
plumbing manufacturers, are stepping up their recycling protocols (http://
A Denver-area deck builder tested surface temperatures (http://bit.
bit.ly/2hIXJsF) despite a lack on industry-wide standards for post-consumer ly/2zVFATn) of various deck materials at 87°F ambient temperature
product quality. “This year, the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) posted the in full sun. He found that virtually all deck boards, including cedar
industry’s first testing protocols, benchmark specifications and a grading system and plastic composites, soared above 150°F, well past the heat
for bales of collected HDPE. It prohibits many contaminants and restricts others.”
Another growing problem is the use of pouches that combine aluminum
and plastic layers. They’re notoriously tough to recycle. Dow Chemical is
reportedly working on a recycling solution. Plastic Classification
Fortunately, new methods of marking and recycling plastics are being
tested, at least outside of the U.S. For example, Ioniqua Technologies, based These polymer codes make recycling much
in the Netherlands, has developed a way to separate plastics from the easier and more efficient.
additives that give them color or other properties. 1. Polyethyleneterephthalate ....................................................(PET)
As reported in a white paper by Ethical Corporation, “When PET is 2. High-Density Polyethylene ................................................ (HDPE)
added to the magnetic smart liquid that Ioniqa has developed, and then 3. Polyvinyl Chloride ..................................................................... (PVC)
heated, the PET depolymerises. The colourants and other contaminants 4. Low-Density Polyethylene ..................................................(LDPE)
are removed in a magnetic field, to leave the original building blocks of 5. Polypropylene ................................................................................(PP)
the polymer.” Those building blocks can be used to create new PET, over 6. Polystyrene ......................................................................................(PS)
and over again. That’s a big advantage, because at the moment PET can 7. Other Types
only be recycled up to six times.
46 GREEN BUILDER November/December 2017 www.greenbuildermedia.com

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