The Process of Progress

By: Robert Juchnicki

After you deposit your recyclables either on the curb or at a deposit/refund program area where exactly do they go and what happens to them? Each type of recyclable goes to its own separate plant where many processes occur for the material to be able to be used by companies to make more products with that material.

Metals and Glass

When metal containers are deposited and taken to a recycling plant, the containers are first separated through the use of a large magnet. The magnet picks up steel containers (since steel contains iron and iron is magnetic) and doesn't pick up aluminum since it is not magnetic. After this any paint on the containers is removed from the containers and then they are crushed and grouped together in bales. These bales are then sent to factories where they are melted and used to make new containers. This is a closed loop meaning that it can go on forever, allowing for the production of metal containers to never cease if people continue to recycle.

When glass is recycled it is first cleaned and separated by color. It is then crushed into what is called cullet. After the cullet is created, it is shipped to a manufacturer of glass containers where it is melted and mixed with some new materials. This melted cullet is then shaped into containers and cooled. This process allows for less natural resources to be used and less pollution to occur as a result of creating glass containers.

Paper and Plastic

When paper is recycled the first step in the process is that the paper is separated by its type. Each type of paper is put into a separate holding area where water is added into it to produce a substance called slurry. This slurry is spread onto long racks and hefty rollers push on the slurry to extract the water and create a lengthy "sheet" of paper. This long "sheet" of paper is then rolled up into a large roll and is cut later depending on what it is being used for. To make office paper wood fibers are added into the slurry. This is not a closed loop, however, since paper looses some quality each time it is recycled. Since plastic is made out of fossil fuels, a limited natural resource it is important to recycle plastic so that we do not deplete the Earth's supply of fossil fuels as quickly. When plastic is recycled it is crushed just like glass is and it is melted. Raw materials (fossil fuels) are added into the melted plastic and the plastic is shaped and cooled to create new containers. This is not a closed loop since new natural resources have to be added into the recycled plastic during this process.

Thanks to: Www.swa.org/pdf/recycling_info_for_teachers.pdf