[writimov]

Reverse supply chain disassembly into raw resources for reuse is not being done in any meaningful way except for a glass, some chips, paper, precious metals and a few other things. We really need a large upgrade in the detection, cleaning, sorting, disassembly, prep for reuse and bulk source materials creation of human waste streams (garbage and recycling).

It starts with detection and sorting robots (one example: https://www.amprobotics.com). Add sensors to tell organic materials from plastics, sort into cleaning. Once cleaned use sensors to detect one type of plastic from another, then sort plastic types.

If one type of plastic is bound to another with a metal screw, use a disassembly robot to get the screw out.

Once sorted, use standard techniques to turn single plastic parts into bulk plastic materials ready for reuse. (Ex. of do-it-yourself version for HDPE https://www.instructables.com/id/Making-Blocks-out-of-HDPE-m...)

Using machine learning and the latest in robotics, this entire cascade could be accomplished but the business model is broken. The machinery would be too expensive to pay back with the value of the recycled materials. Instead we need to value the effort of keeping these pollutants out of the general environment. Carbon credits are a great example of how this value can be created.

Create a plastics pollution credits marketplace where you get paid to keep plastics out of landfills. Now maybe the robots, sensors, and recycling technologies are cost effective.

[lozenge]

If there was actually political will for carbon credits or waste reduction I would much rather it go to a far more efficient target - reduce the amount of waste in the first place instead of making incredibly complicated recycling robots.