The need for plastic is increasing every year because of its favourable properties. Producing more plastic products, however, generates waste which we must manage by reusing and recycling.
The main focus of my thesis is to study how recycling effects the properties of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) after recycling. We presented a few basic properties of HDPE and the main degradation mechanisms. The primary reason for degradation is thermo-mechanical stress during the lifetime of a product as well as recycling process. In a study of extensively recycled HDPE (up to 100x) we found out that some mechanical properties do not deteriorate for the first 10 cycles. We also analysed some other studies, which showed the influence of the addition of PET is positive for some mechanical properties if we also add a compatibilising additive.
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