Forecasting technological disruptions in plastic waste management

Plastic is used everywhere in the world and has been for a long time. Today, plastic plays a critical role in nearly every aspect of daily life and human activity. The production of plastics has over the decades increased considerably, with an amount of 350 million tons per year. In 2021, the recycling of plastic waste was only 9.7%, implying major environmental effects. This emphasises the importance of increasing the resources of handling the waste of it. The purpose of this research assignment is to explore and predict upcoming technological advancements that could disrupt and transform plastic waste management practices from the operations aspects. Additionally this research assignment explains the incremental innovations existing today within plastic waste management and economical constraints as well as new legal factors that This research explores the potential for disruptive technological advancements to revolutionize the management of plastic waste. The study identifies and evaluates six key disruptive technologies: digital watermarking for efficient waste sorting, biodegradable plastics capable of natural decomposition, enzymatic depolymerization for recycling PET plastics, recycling plastic waste into 3D printing filaments, co-recycling of plastic waste and biomass to minimize carbon losses, and the application of nanotechnology in PET recycling to enhance material properties. Additionally this report addresses incremental innovations, economic constraints, and emerging legal frameworks that shape the future landscape of plastic waste recycling. The findings demonstrate that while economic barriers and scalability remain key obstacles, the integration of advanced disruptive technologies with incremental innovations have the potential to significantly improve recycling rates.