Recycling codes
 | The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (May 2015) |
Recycling codes are used to identify the material from which an item is made, to facilitate easier recycling or other reprocessing. Having a recycling code, the chasing arrows logo or a resin code on an item is not an automatic indicator that a material is recyclable but rather an explanation of what the item is. Such symbols have been defined for batteries, biomatter/organic material, glass, metals, paper, and plastics.[citation needed] Various countries have adopted different codes. For example, the Table below shows the polymer resin codes (plastic) for a country. In the United States there are fewer as ABS is grouped in with other in group 7. Other countries have a more granular recycling code system. For example, China's polymer identification system has seven different classifications of plastic, five different symbols for post-consumer paths, and 140 identification codes[1] The lack of codes in some countries has encouraged those who can fabricate their own plastic products, such as RepRap and other prosumer 3-D printer users, to adopt a voluntary recycling code based on the more comprehensive Chinese system.[2]
List
| Symbol | Code | Description | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plastics (see resin identification code[3]) [4] | |||
|
#1 PET(E) | Polyethylene terephthalate | Polyester fibers, soft drink bottles |
|
#2 PEHD or HDPE | High-density polyethylene | Plastic bottles, plastic bags, trash cans, imitation wood |
|
#3 PVC | Polyvinyl chloride | Window frames, bottles for chemicals, flooring, plumbing pipes |
|
#4 PELD or LDPE | Low-density polyethylene | Plastic bags, buckets, soap dispenser bottles, plastic tubes |
|
#5 PP | Polypropylene | Bumpers, car interior trim, industrial fibers, carry-out beverage cups |
|
#6 PS | Polystyrene | Toys, flower pots, video cassettes, ashtrays, trunks, beverage/food coolers, beer cups, wine and champagne cups, carry-out food containers, Styrofoam |
|
#7 O (OTHER) | All other plastics | Polycarbonate (PC), polyamide (PA), styrene acrylonitrile (SAN), acrylic plastics/polyacrylonitrile (PAN), bioplastics |
|
#9 or #ABS[citation needed] | Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene | Monitor/TV cases, coffee makers, cell phones, most computer plastic |
|
PA[citation needed] | Polyamide | Nylon |
| Batteries (see also battery recycling) | |||
| #8 Lead[citation needed] | Lead–acid battery | Car batteries | |
| #9 or #19 Alkaline | Alkaline battery | ||
| #10 NiCD | Nickel–cadmium battery | ||
| #11 NiMH | Nickel–metal hydride battery | ||
| #12 Li | Lithium battery | ||
| #13 SO(Z) | Silver-oxide battery | ||
| #14 CZ | Zinc–carbon battery | ||
| Paper | |||
|
#20 C PAP (PCB) | Cardboard | |
|
#21 PAP | Other paper | Mixed paper magazines, mail |
|
#22 PAP | Wax Paper (single sided) | McDonald's: fast food sandwich wrappers, meat packing, gum wrappers, some drink boxes, BetaMax boxes. |
| #23 PBD (PPB) | Paperboard | Greeting cards, frozen food boxes, book covers | |
| Metals | |||
|
#40 FE | Steel | |
 
|
#41 ALU | Aluminium | |
| Biomatter/Organic material | |||
|
#50 FOR | Wood | |
|
#51 FOR | Cork | Bottle stoppers, place mats, construction material |
|
#60 COT | Cotton | |
|
#61 TEX | Jute | |
| #62-69 TEX | Other Textiles | ||
| Glass | |||
|
#70 GLS | Mixed Glass Container/Multi-Part Container | |
|
#71 GLS | Clear Glass | |
|
#72 GLS | Green Glass | |
| #73 GLS | Dark Sort Glass | ||
| #74 GLS | Light Sort Glass | ||
| #75 GLS | Light Leaded Glass | Televisions, high-end electronics display glass | |
| #76 GLS | Leaded Glass | Older televisions, ash trays, older beverage holders | |
| #77 GLS | Copper Mixed / Copper Backed Glass | Electronics, LCD display heads, clocks, watches | |
| #78 GLS | Silver Mixed / Silver Backed Glass | Mirrors, formal table settings | |
| #79 GLS | Gold Mixed / Gold Backed Glass | Computer glass, formal table settings | |
| Composites (80—99) | |||
| #81 PapPet | Paper + plastic | Consumer packaging, pet food bags, cold store grocery bags, Icecream containers, cardboard cans, disposable plates | |
| #82 | Paper and fibreboard / Aluminium | ||
| #83 | Paper and fibreboard / Tinplate | ||
|
#84 C/PAP (or PapAl) | Paper and cardboard / Plastic / Aluminium | Liquid storage containers, juice boxes, cardboard cans, cigarette pack liners, gum wrappers, cartage shells for blanks, fireworks colouring material, Tetra Brik. |
| #85 | Paper and fibreboard / plastic / aluminium / tinplate | ||
| #87 Card-stock Laminate | Biodegradable plastic | Laminating material, special occasion cards, bookmarks, business cards, flyers/advertising | |
| #90 | Plastics / Aluminium | ||
| #91 | Plastic / Tinplate | ||
| #92 | Plastic / Miscellaneous metals | ||
| #95 | Glass / Plastic | ||
| #96 | Glass / Aluminium | ||
| #97 | Glass / Tinplate | ||
| #98 | Glass / Miscellaneous metals | ||
See also
- Resin identification code
- Japanese recycling symbols
- Waste hierarchy
- Waste management
- Food safe symbol
- Bag It (documentary)
References
- ^ Standardization Administration of the People’s Republic of China (SAC) GB16288,2008. Marking of plastics products. Chinese Standard Publishing House, Beijing; 2008.
- ^ Emily J. Hunt, Chenlong Zhang, Nick Anzalone, Joshua M. Pearce, Polymer recycling codes for distributed manufacturing with 3-D printers, Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 97, pp. 24-30 (2015). DOI:10.1016/j.resconrec.2015.02.004
- ^ Plastic Packaging Resins American Chemistry Council
- ^ Official Journal of the EC; Commission Decision (97/129/EC) establishing the ID system for packaging materials pursuant to European Parliament & Council Directive 94/62/EC
External links
- Christie Engineering Standard – Packaging Labeling and Design for Environment Guidelines Includes lists of material codes in several countries.
- Packaging Material Codes Includes lists of material codes in Germany.
