Collection 

Polymers and plastics sustainability

Submission status
Closed
Submission deadline

As the global demand for polymers and plastics intensifies, an unsettling statistic from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development reveals that only 9% of these materials were recycled worldwide in 2019. This results in an alarming accumulation of approximately 400 Mt of polymers and plastics as waste in the environment — with predictions suggesting a leap to over 1.1 Gt by 2060 [1]. Tackling this urgent environmental issue requires innovation for advancing circularity across the entire polymers and plastics life cycle — from design and production to utilization and reuse. This collection presents cutting-edge research on cradle-to-cradle strategies set to transform polymer and plastic waste into valuable resources. Moreover, the collection highlights the promising role of biopolymers and bio-based materials within the circular economy, setting them forth as sustainable alternatives to traditional petroleum-derived polymers.

Highlighted research in this collection includes, but is not restricted to:

  • Chemical and Biological Recycling and Upcycling: Advances in chemo and biocatalysis, spotlighting the promise of achieving circularity in polymer constituents from plastics and composites.
  • Lifecycle Innovations: Comprehensive models and emphasising techno-economic analysis that reimagine the lifecycle of legacy and emerging bio-based polymers.
  • Advanced Plastic Waste Management: Breakthroughs in polymer classification, mechanical extraction, and pyrolytic transformations, focusing on end-of-life stages.
  • Next-Gen Biopolymers and Bio-Based Polymers: Insights into extraction, synthesis and manufacture, structure-function interplays, and ecological implications of up-and-coming bio-sourced polymers as alternatives to legacy petroleum-based polymers.

[1] https://www.oecd.org/environment/global-plastic-waste-set-to-almost-triple-by-2060.htm#

This Collection supports and amplifies research related to SDG 12.

Plastic collecting for recycling. Plastic caps and Lids plastic bottles in garbage bag for recycling.

Editors

  • Roberto Rinaldi, PhD

    Roberto Rinaldi, PhD

    Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, United Kingdom

The Collection will publish original research Articles, Reviews, Perspectives and Comments (full details on content types can be found here). Papers will be published in npj Materials Sustainability as soon as they are accepted and then collected together and promoted on the Collection homepage. All Guest Edited Collections are associated with a call for papers and are managed by one or more of our Editorial Board Members and the journal's Editors.

This Collection welcomes submissions from all authors – and not by invitation only – on the condition that the manuscripts fall within the scope of the Collection and of npj Materials Sustainability more generally. See our editorial process page for more details. 

All submissions are subject to the same peer review process and editorial standards as regular npj Materials Sustainability articles, including the journal’s policy on competing interests. The Editor has no competing interests with the submissions, which they handle through the peer-review process. The peer review of any submissions for which the Editor has competing interests is handled by another Editorial Board Member who has no competing interests. See our Collections guidelines for more details. 

This Collection is not supported by sponsorship.