Review on Advanced Plastic Waste Recycling Technologies

The rapid growth in plastic production and consumption has resulted in a substantial increase in plastic waste, creating serious environmental and resource-management concerns. Conventional mechanical recycling is an important method for recovering plastic materials; however, its effectiveness is limited when dealing with contaminated, mixed, multilayer, and repeatedly processed plastics. In response to these limitations, advanced recycling technologies are being developed to improve material recovery and enable the conversion of difficult plastic waste into useful resources. This review examines emerging plastic waste recycling techniques, including pyrolysis, gasification, chemical depolymerization, and solvent-based recycling. These processes can transform waste plastics into valuable products such as fuels, chemical feed stocks, monomers, and reusable polymer materials. In addition, developments in automated sorting, artificial intelligence, robotics, and advanced separation systems are improving the identification and processing of different plastic types. The review also considers the environmental and industrial significance of these technologies in supporting resource conservation and circular-economy practices. However, the large-scale application of advanced recycling remains associated with challenges such as high capital requirements, energy consumption, process complexity, variations in waste composition, and insufficient collection and recycling infrastructure. Effective implementation therefore requires improvements in technology, waste segregation, process efficiency, economic feasibility, and regulatory support. Overall, advanced plastic recycling technologies provide promising pathways for managing complex plastic waste and recovering valuable resources. Their integration with efficient waste-management systems and circular-economy strategies can contribute to reducing plastic pollution and promoting more sustainable utilization of plastic resources.