Evaluation of the Mechanical Behavior of ABS/HIPS Blends from WEEE  by Single Screw Extrusion

Francis Oliveira de Menezes; Rodrygo Silveira de Carvalho Viana; Zora Ionara Gama dos Santos

doi:10.34178/jbth.v9i8.694

Francis Oliveira de Menezes
Rodrygo Silveira de Carvalho Viana
Zora Ionara Gama dos Santos

DOI: https://doi.org/10.34178/jbth.v9i8.694

Keywords: Single Screw, Blends, WEEE, HIPS, ABS

Abstract

Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) has seen its useful life significantly shortened due to rapid technological development and innovation, growing commercial demand for updated equipment, and increasingly broad applications. To avoid the accumulation of waste in waste facilities, new recycling methods for this material have been studied. In this regard, this study aimed to optimize the composition and processing method of thermoplastic blends (ABS/HIPS) using polymers from the mechanical recycling of WEEE. This blend was then used to produce filaments for 3D printers. It also aimed to evaluate the effect of six recycling cycles on the mechanical properties of these blends, always comparing them to commercial, virgin ABS. To this end, the materials, primarily derived from discarded air conditioning housings, were processed in a single-screw extruder, where the blends underwent six successive processing cycles. The test specimens were obtained through the injection molding process, sectioned at the end of each extrusion cycle, thus separating them into samples ranging from zero to five processes, and studied via uniaxial tensile testing and impact strength testing. The results show that regarding mechanical tensile performance, the consecutive reprocessing may have slightly influenced the blend's properties, although they remained acceptable consistency. This was also true for impact strength values, although they appear to have less influence on this property, i.e., better reprocessing tolerance. Overall, the results are promising and suggest the possibility of recycling the ABS/HIPS blend without significant changes resulting from the degradation process; the new application simply requires mechanical stresses within the limits that the recycled blend can meet. Furthermore, the blend did not exhibit inferior properties to the filament used in printing during printing and is considered suitable as a raw material.