Plastic waste is a notorious and growing problem around the globe, and with this problem, has emerged a pressing need for innovation. For some industries, the solution may appear as simple as switching to nonplastic alternatives, but for many designs, this just isn’t possible. Industrial Custom Products understands that the flexibility of well-made plastics is invaluable. In the fast-moving world of production, thermoplastics offer a clever and modern solution to the modern problem of excessive waste.
Thermoplastics have a variety of appealing characteristics: resistance to damage and corrosion, high strength, low density, and beyond. But environmentally speaking, their real game changer is their reusability. Thermoplastics can be recycled into other shapes and forms using heat, and this can be done over and over again. Thermoplastic recycling is made possible due to the weak attraction of the comprising molecules. Where some plastics form strong bonds when heated, thermoplastics stay formable and flexible whether you use them twice or over ten times, which makes thermoplastic recycling a powerful tool in any engineer’s arsenal. Using recycled thermoplastics also has a great impact on part cost as well!
Thanks to some of the same properties that make thermoplastic recycling a possibility, many thermoplastics are also largely fire retardant. As noted above, high heats cause thermoplastics to melt instead of burn, and ultimately, resist ignition for longer. For clients, this means that thermoplastics create products that are more resistant to accidental damage or heat-related failure. Even in the case of ignition, many thermoplastics are capable of self-extinguishing due to a high chlorine content. These factors in tandem reduce risks of environmental contamination from smoke, waste due to accidental loss, and the need to replace parts with virgin or unused plastics.
Some materials appear recyclable on the surface, but when exposed to a heat beyond their ignition point, they go up in flames, giving off toxic fumes and dioxins. Industrial Custom Products can source nontoxic materials that are not a threat to the environment thanks to insignificant dioxin output during burning. This means that even if the worst happens and unintended burning occurs, you’ll still be mitigating the environmental impact.
Choosing thermoplastics and utilizing thermoplastic recycling is a modern way to further your design concepts. Industrial Custom Products offers a variety of tools and methods for producing the parts that you envision for the projects that you care about. Call our thermoplastics experts at (612) 781-2255 or contact us today.
