Table 1.

Common classification, approaches and examples of plastic recycling (inspired by [18]).

Classification	Approach	Examples of Recycled Products	Applications
Primary recycling	Mechanical recycling	Virgin-like PET granules	New bottles
Secondary recycling	Mechanical recycling	Lower value plastic granules	Trash bags; pipelines
Tertiary recycling	Chemical recycling	BHET (monomer of PET)	New PET polymer
Quaternary recycling	Energy recovery *	-	Power energy

* Incineration for energy recovery is no longer classified as recycling in Europe [18].