The recycling of plastics is a difficult problem because of three main features:
* A worldwide consumption of roughly 170 million tonnes for a turnover of about $600 billion,
* A heterogeneous stream of very diversified and often non-miscible materials from commodities up to very expensive high-tech materials, including thermoplastics, thermosets, composites, foams, hybrids…
* A wide scattering of end-of-life parts and goods of various forms and weights, from the carrier bags up to yachts, car bodies or plane wings
Reuse means any operation by which components of end-of life vehicles are used for the same purpose for which they were conceived.
Recycling means the reprocessing in a production process of the waste materials for the original purpose or for other purposes but excluding energy recovery. Reprocessing in the production for the original purpose is the best recycling solution.
Energy recovery means the use of combustible waste as a means to generate energy through direct incineration with or without other waste but with recovery of the heat.