Study on PET Recovery from Polymeric Mixtures, Using the Floatation Technique, and Valorization of the Collected Particles by Dyeing Them

Abstract

The aim of this study is to separate PET flakes by applying floatation technique, initially from binary polymer blends and later from the mixture of five common polymers such as polypropylene, polyethylene, poly(vinyl chloride), polstyrene and poly(ethylene terephthalate). A connection line between polymer and fiber is presumed in this study, because the dyeing of recovered polyester with three disperse dyes followed. The separation of plastics was performed in a Plexiglas air floatation column. The Lutensol® TO 8 surfactant of non-ionic origin was used to selectively wet the plastics. The parameters studied were pH values, surfactant concentration and treatment time. The dyeing of the recovered PET was performed with Serilene Blue RL, Serisol Crimson ECF and Serisol Yellow ECF dyes at 90 °C, 110 °C, 130 °C and pH = 4.6.