Reusable box made from recyclate for transporting drones

The students of the KIT-The Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Process Engineering have developed a special recycling concept: This involves Recovering plastics from composite packaging that were previously almost impossible to recycle and processed into reusable shipping boxes. „Compared to other recycling processes, in which only the unmixed plastics are processed into recyclate, we want to recycle composite packaging and reuse all of the recyclable materials it contains. In this way, we also returns the unpopular plastic waste from household waste back into the cycle“, says Tom Poppe, Master's student at KIT. „We are also combining the recycling of plastic waste with the growing, huge demand for packaging in the mail order business.“

The model devised by Jonas Jaske, Tom Poppe, Philipp Beeskow, Lukas Richter and Paul Neugebauer provides for the Remove plastic adhesive between the millimetre- to nanometre-thin layers of the multilayer packaging with solvent and thus separate the individual types of plastic. Shipping boxes are then to be produced from the recovered raw materials.

Recycled Polymer Packaging Karlsruhe, RepoPaK for short, is what the students call their recycling process and the sustainable, injection-moulded shipping box. These will be available in different sizes, made from a recycled plastic suitable for the respective volume.

„For smaller crates, which are likely to be in higher demand, you could use recyclates that are available in larger quantities. Sizes that are less in demand could then be made from other types. In this way, all types of recyclate can ultimately be reused.“

Jonas Jaske, Master's student at KIT.