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Impact on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Analysis of institutional authors

Pavon, CCorresponding AuthorFerri, JmAuthorSamper, MdAuthor

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October 30, 2024
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Identification of biodegradable polymers as contaminants in the thermoplastic recycling process

Publicated to: Dyna. 96 (4): 415-421 - 2021-01-01 96(4), DOI: 10.6036/10102

Authors:

Pavón-Vargas, Cristina Paola; Aldás-Carrasco, Miguel Fernando; Ferri, José-Miguel; Bertomeu, David; Pawlak, Franciszek; Samper, María-Dolores
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Affiliations

Cabka Spain SLU, Ronda Auguste & Louis Lumiere 23 - Author
Escuela Politecn Nacl EPN, Fac Ingn Quim & Agroind, Dept Ciencias Alimentos & Biotecnol, Avda Ladron Guevara 253 - Author
Univ Sci & Technol Bydgoszcz, Fac Technol & Chem Engn, Seminaryjna 3 - Author
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Abstract

In this work, the presence of biodegradable polymers in recycled plastic materials was characterized using readily available techniques. Recycled polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) were studied. The contamination of these plastics with polylactic acid (PLA), polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) and thermoplastic starch (TPS) was simulated using 10 wt.% of the contaminant. Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were used as characterization techniques. In addition, the effect of aging on recycled products from PET blends contaminated with TPS and PHB was studied. The results show changes in the intensity of the FTIR spectra bands of the PS and PP blends contaminated with biodegradable polymers. By DSC, changes in the cold crystallization peak of recycled PET are observed when mixed with TPS and PHB. When the contaminant is PLA, the changes are masked due to the thermal characteristics of both materials. In PS, changes in the calorimetric curves are identified by the presence of PLA and PHB. Contamination with PLA, PHB and TPS hinders the processing of recycled PET after one year of storage due to the aging of the material.
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Keywords

AcidBiodegradable plasticsBiopolymersBlendsClean water and sanitationPetPlaPolyethylenePolyethylene terephthalatePolypropylenePolystyreneRecyclingStarch

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Dyna, and although the journal is classified in the quartile Q3 (Agencia WoS (JCR)), its regional focus and specialization in Engineering, Multidisciplinary, give it significant recognition in a specific niche of scientific knowledge at an international level.

Independientemente del impacto esperado determinado por el canal de difusión, es importante destacar el impacto real observado de la propia aportación.

Según las diferentes agencias de indexación, el número de citas acumuladas por esta publicación hasta la fecha 2026-04-06:

  • WoS: 5
  • Scopus: 5
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Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2026-04-06:

  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 14 (PlumX).

It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

  • The work has been submitted to a journal whose editorial policy allows open Open Access publication.
  • Additionally, the work has been submitted to a journal classified as Diamond in relation to this type of editorial policy.
  • Assignment of a Handle/URN as an identifier within the deposit in the Institutional Repository: http://hdl.handle.net/10251/180317
Continuing with the social impact of the work, it is important to emphasize that, due to its content, it can be assigned to the area of interest of ODS 6 - Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all, with a probability of 52% according to the mBERT algorithm developed by Aurora University.
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Leadership analysis of institutional authors

This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: Ecuador; Poland.

There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: First Author (Pavón Vargas, Cristina Paola) and Last Author (Samper Madrigal, María Dolores).

the author responsible for correspondence tasks has been Pavón Vargas, Cristina Paola.

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Project objectives

Los objetivos perseguidos en esta aportación se centran en identificar y caracterizar la presencia de polímeros biodegradables como contaminantes en el proceso de reciclaje de termoplásticos. Se pretende analizar la contaminación de polipropileno, poliestireno y tereftalato de polietileno con ácido poliláctico, poli-hidroxibutirato y almidón termoplástico. Además, se busca evaluar la eficacia de técnicas accesibles como la espectrometría infrarroja por transformada de Fourier y la calorimetría diferencial de barrido para dicha caracterización. También se pretende determinar el efecto del envejecimiento en productos reciclados de mezclas de PET contaminadas con TPS y PHB. Finalmente, se aspira a identificar las alteraciones en las propiedades térmicas y espectrales causadas por estos contaminantes.
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Most relevant results

El estudio identificó la presencia de polímeros biodegradables como contaminantes en materiales plásticos reciclados mediante técnicas accesibles. Se observaron cambios en la intensidad de las bandas FTIR en mezclas de poliestireno (PS) y polipropileno (PP) contaminadas con polímeros biodegradables. Mediante DSC, se detectaron modificaciones en el pico de cristalización en frío del PET reciclado contaminado con almidón termoplástico (TPS) y poli-hidroxibutirato (PHB), mientras que la presencia de ácido poliláctico (PLA) enmascaró estos cambios. En PS, las curvas calorimétricas mostraron alteraciones por PLA y PHB. Finalmente, la contaminación con PLA, PHB y TPS dificultó el procesamiento del PET reciclado tras un año de envejecimiento del material.
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Awards linked to the item

This research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO), projects: PROMADEPCOL (MAT2017-84909-C2-2-R).
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