Recycling of polyester-based co polymers

Poly (ethylene terephthalate) is the most important polyester ca. 95% of the total polyester consumption belongs to PET [14]. The annual world consumption of PET is higher than 25 million tons, with a further increasing tendency of ca. 10% per year. This is an important factor determining the position of polyesters among other polymers. 

The immiscible blends of thermoplastic polymers are assumed to be compatible if the presence of a finely dispersed phase and the resistance to bulk phase separation/segregation result in satisfactory physical and mechanical properties. Compatibility is usually facilitated by copolymers, especially block or graft copolymers, with segments capable of specific interactions at the interface, thus resulting in a decrease of the interfacial tension and promoting mechanical interlocking by the interpenetration and entanglements between the blend components. 

TPE (co)polymers from step-growth polymerization processes can be used as compatibilizers for melt blending of the respective polymers, e.g., polyesters with polyamides or polycarbonate. The interfacial chemical reactions between 

The hydrolysis of waste polyesters, especially PET, has been described in detail and is extensively used for monomer(s) recovery. A long list of relevant references is given in [1]. 

The hydrolysis of waste polyamides is widely used for monomer(s) recovery [5-12], 

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