Mechanical Properties and Performance Evaluation of Recycled HDPE Materials for Environmental Waste Control and Economic Benefits

High-density polyethylene (HDPE) waste is found loitered everywhere and this is s menace to environmental sanitation because it is not biodegradable. Toxic chemicals leach out of plastics and are found in the blood and tissue of nearly all humans. Exposure to them is linked to cancers, birth defects, impaired immunity, endocrine disruption, and other ailments that need to be controlled to the minimum if not eliminated. Hence this study controlled this waste by mechanical processing and converted the waste to wealth for economic benefits. These wastes were molded into a variety of products that find use in a wide range of applications using a plastic compression molding machine to recycle the HDPE waste plastic material in a confined shape by applying heat and pressure. The process is followed by three steps preheating, pressurizing, and cooling. These recyclable plastic wastes are made into floor tiles, coffee table tops, and kitchen chopping boards which have the hardness property to be 69.37 RHN on average. The machine helps in reducing the plastic waste in landfill sites which is primarily responsible for environmental pollution.