Plastics - A Green & Smart Future

Now we face new challenges, our world is screaming for help to curb environmental degradation in order to create a better world for generations to come. We have been working tirelessly to create new technologies that utilize recycled and reprocessed materials. We are working to increase the recovery of plastic waste from landfills and from the sea to reutilize them back in our processes or in the creation of new products. However, it’s challenging to meet established performance standards depending on the application.

Technology is advancing at a fast pace promoting the creation of new products. New technologies have been incorporated to align the development of plastic products to changes happening in our society. The telecommunications field is the one I have involved with the most. The miniaturization of fiber optic cables and the plastic conduit in which they are installed in has caused the equipment manufacturers to create new technologies to increase production speeds and accurate controls of raw material consumption. Today, state of the art extrusion equipment is controlled by powerful computer systems that control the extrusion process and gravimetric systems for raw material feeding. The most advanced manufacturing facilities look like high-tech laboratories with highly qualified technicians and engineers orchestrating manufacturing processes.

The new efforts in research and development are now focused on the development of clean, recyclable plastics that are safe for the environment. We are integrating smart sensors and Nano Technology into plastic conduit to make it locatable and capable of sending information after it’s been installed underground. Electronic devices and computers are utilized to gather data including location, changes in temperature, leak detection, vibration, transit, intrusion, etc. We are developing self-healing plastics and elastomers to fix cracks or eliminate adhesives. We are also integrating super materials like carbon fiber for special applications.

There remain innovations to come in the near future, but as I mentioned before our focus must be to develop environmentally friendly materials embedded with new technologies including Artificial Intelligence. There are thousands of miles of conduit and cables installed underground in our cities to interconnect every one of us. As a core part of the infrastructure that lies underneath these surfaces we have a responsibility to build a foundation that is safe, accessible, and intelligent today while protecting our environment tomorrow.