POLYMER WASTE MANAGEMENT WITH THE MAIN STRESS ON THE EUROPEAN UNION

Diplomsko delo opisuje gospodarjenje z odpadki iz polimernih materialov s poudarkom na Evropski uniji (EU). V začetku so predstavljene osnove polimernih materialov. V sklopu tega je obravnavana najobsežnejša skupina polimernih materialov, to so plastične mase, kjer so opisana področja njihove uporabe, razvoj proizvodnje in porabe teh materialov ter količine njihovih odpadkov v svetu, EU in Sloveniji. V nadaljevanju je predstavljena problematika trajnostnega sonaravnega razvoja, njegova soodvisnost z razvojem polimernih materialov, hierarhija ukrepov integralnega ravnanja z odpadki v EU in okoljska zakonodaja EU, ki je relevantna za področje odpadkov iz polimernih materialov. Sklop gospodarjenja z odpadki iz polimernih materialov je posvečen predvsem predstavitvi metod za identifikacijo in ločevanje odpadkov iz polimernih materialov ter različnih postopkov za njihovo reciklažo (mehanska, kemijska in energijska reciklaža ter plemenitenje reciklatov). V zadnjem delu so izpostavljeni pomembnejši dejavniki, ki vplivajo na tržno sprejemljivost reciklatov polimernih materialov. Prikazane so tudi različne možnosti uporabe reciklatov in na primerih večjih podjetij v mednarodnem merilu opisana uporaba le-teh v njihovih proizvodih.Diploma describes polymer waste management with the main stress on the European Union (EU). At the beginning there is a presentation of the basic principles of polymeric materials. The most extensive group of polymeric materials – plastics – is discussedthe areas of plastics usage, development of production and consumption as well as the quantity of their waste in the world, EU and in Slovenia are presented. Further, the problems of sustainable development and its interdependence with the development of polymeric materials are discussed. The hierarchy of provisions of integral treatment with waste in EU and with environmental legislation of EU, which is relevant for field of polymer waste, are illustrated. The complex of polymer waste management is dedicated above all to presentation of the methods for identification and separation of polymer waste and to different procedures of their recycling (mechanical, chemical, energy recycling and modification of recyclates). In the final part there is an exposure of the most important factors that influence on acceptability of recycled polymer waste in the market. Different possibilities of usage of polymeric secondary raw materials and the description of their usage in the products of some large enterprises in international scale are also discussed