A Visit with an Expert
On October 23rd, our group was visited by guest speaker Dr. Rich Karpowicz, an experienced professional in the materials science/plastic recycling field.
During his visit to the class, Dr. Karpowicz delivered a presentation regarding the chemical makeup of plastic, the fundamental chemistry behind plastic recycling, and how to maximize the amount of plastic that can be recycled.
Dr. Karpowicz educated the class on the challenges that face the plastics recycling industry, such as “Forever Chemicals” (chemicals within a material that never return to the earth) and non-recyclable materials such as adhesives and film layers.
Dr. Karpowicz also taught the class about the distinction between chemical recycling (a system that uses enzymes to break down plastic polymers into subunits called monomers) and mechanical recycling (the process of reusing and recirculating existing materials), and what can happen when the two methods of recycling are accidentally mixed.
Overall, the visit from Dr. Karpowicz was a productive, fascinating, and informative event that we all took something from. The entire class thanks Dr. Karpowicz greatly for his time and expertise!
Above: group picture with Dr. K
Justen Musewicz
