Enzymatic recycling of polyethylene terephthalate through the lens of proprietary processes

Abstract

Because society is doing significant efforts to recycle plastics, one option is to break them down into monomers with the help of specialized enzymes. Polyesters such as PLA (polylactic), PCL (polycaprolactone), PHAs (polyhydroxyalkanoates) and PET (polyethylene-terephthalate) have been considered in more detail for these biological treatments, because they can be now produced as bio-based polymers, and because ester bounds and esterases are very frequently found in nature. In particular since PET is the most abundant thermoplastic of the polyester family and accounts for approximately 10% of all synthetic plastics on the market, it has attracted more attention. Here we will review the patented biological recycling processes concerning the recycling of PET.