Abstract With current low recycling rates and exponentially increasing production of plastics there is an increase in plastic material wastage, and thus new technologies are needed for waste refining. Presently in Europe, only about 10% of plastic waste is recycled, most of which is achieved through mechanical recycling. Chemical recycling methods like pyrolysis could significantly increase these recycling rates, as it can utilize mixtures of waste plastics unlike mechanical recycling. It can also be used to treat waste of many novel materials, such as composites, especially in the emerging phase when the volumes of the new materials in markets are low making separate collection of waste not a cost-efficient option. Pyrolysis offers an environmentally sound alternative to incineration and inefficient landfilling. Currently, main challenges for pyrolysis of plastic waste are unavailability and inconsistent quality of feedstock, inefficient and hence costly sorting, non-existent markets citing lack for standardized products, and unclear regulations around plastic waste management. Possible solutions could include tight cooperation between feedstock providers and converters for securing steady quantity and quality of feedstock. Advanced pre-treatment would provide the basis for cost-effective recycling. The classification of pyrolysis liquid as a product instead of waste is needed, and the REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) registration should be carried out to standardise the liquid oil as a product. In addition, sustainability impacts need to be clearly positive.

中文翻译：

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塑料垃圾的热解：机遇与挑战

摘要 由于目前回收率低且塑料产量呈指数级增长，塑料材料的浪费也在增加，因此需要新技术来处理废物。目前在欧洲，只有约 10% 的塑料废物被回收利用，其中大部分是通过机械回收实现的。热解等化学回收方法可以显着提高这些回收率，因为与机械回收不同，它可以利用废塑料的混合物。它还可以用于处理许多新型材料的废物，例如复合材料，特别是在新兴阶段，当市场上新材料的数量很少时，单独收集废物不是一种具有成本效益的选择。热解为焚烧和低效填埋提供了一种环保的替代方案。现在，塑料垃圾热解的主要挑战是原料不可用且质量不稳定、分类效率低且成本高、缺乏标准化产品导致市场不存在，以及塑料垃圾管理法规不明确。可能的解决方案包括原料供应商和加工商之间的紧密合作，以确保原料的数量和质量稳定。先进的预处理将为具有成本效益的回收提供基础。需要将热解液分类为产品而不是废物，并应进行REACH（化学品注册，评估，授权和限制）注册，以规范液体油作为产品。此外，可持续性影响需要明显是积极的。