Innovative Farming and Building Materials from Recycled Plastics

Abstract

espite the ban on use of plastic paper bags, large amounts of plastic litter still exist in our environment. Plastic bottles form a greater percentage of the litter. The growth of the consumer market for cosmetics and soft drinks which are usually packaged in plastic containers continues to give rise to plastic pollution. To maintain the quality of the environment while achieving sustainable development plastic litter could be viewed as raw and innovative materials for making new items. Plastics can be recycled and made into furniture, ornamental products, and building blocks among others. This paper describes how recycling plastic waste into products of plastic sheets and blocks is conducted for multi-purpose use. The resultant sheets and blocks can be designed to have slots and extensions on the edges such that they allow interlocking the same way concrete interlock blocks work. The sheets and blocks can be used to make furniture, office partitions, and interior design. The sheets for furniture making can be craftily decorated with beads while they are still in molten state to produce ornamental furniture. This can be achieved through arranging beads in molds before introducing the molten polymers into them. The plastic blocks and sheets can also be used to make swimming pools and fish ponds. Heating temperature and oxidation should however be monitored to prevent degradation of the polymers. The resultant products are durable, attractive and affordable.