Life-Cycle Assessment of Recycling Postconsumer High-Density Polyethylene and Polyethylene Terephthalate

Table 11

Solid waste for recycled PET resin (kg of waste per ton of resin).

	Process solid wastes
	Landfill	Incineration	Waste-to-energy	Fuel-related solid wastes	Total	Total %
PET: cut-off, volume-based collection (50% compaction)
Collection (50% compaction)	0	0	0	2.23	2.2	0.6
Sorting/separation	73	0	0	1.26	74.3	21.5
Reclaimer processing to flake	221	0	0	47.5	268.5	77.8
Total for PET flake	294	0	0	50.99	345.0
Percent by category	77	0	0	0
Conversion of flake to pellet	0	0	0	44
Total for PET pellet	294	0	0	94.99	389.0
Percent by category	75.70	0.00	0	24
PET: system expansion, volume-based collection (50% compaction)
Allocated virgin resin production	16.6	1.01	0	54	71.6	29.1
Collection (50% compaction)	0	0	0	1.13	1.13	0.5
Sorting/separation	37	0	0	0.64	37.6	15.3
Reclaimer processing to pellet	112	0	0	24.1	136.1	55.2
Total for PET flake	165.6	1.01	0	79.87	246.5
Percent by category	67.2	0.4	0	32.4
Conversion of flake to pellet	0	0	0	22	22
Total for PET pellet	165.6	1.01	0	101.87	268.5
Percent by category	61.7	0.4	0.0	37.9