Abstract
Japan has been exporting a portion of its post-consumer polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles for recycling, mainly to China. However, now that China has regulated its import of solid waste, including PET bottles, Japan’s current recycling system needs to be reviewed. When designing the recycling system there are several constraints, including the amount of PET bottles being collected, the capacity of recycling facilities, and the acceptable amount of recycled resin. Therefore, any discussion on this must take into account the entire material flow process for PET resin products.
In this paper, we construct a framework for designing recycling scenarios and apply it to the post-consumer PET bottles being collected in Japan. We first analyze the domestic material flow of PET resin products as a means of estimating acceptable amounts for recycled PET resin as the raw material in each product. In addition, based on interviews and a literature review on the uses of recycled resin, we summarize the acceptability of recycled resin for the intended products. This acceptability varies on how PET bottles are collected and what recycling technology is applied. Based on such constraints related to the amount and quality of recycled resin, we propose recycling scenarios that will allow for management of the whole post-consumer PET bottles domestically.
