• Login
    • Join
  • Subscribe Free
    • Magazine
    • eNewsletter
    Checkout
    • Magazine
    • News
    • Exclusives
    • Applications
    • Technology
    • Market
    • Other
    • Top 40
    • Buyers Guide
    • Hygiene Directory
    • More
  • Magazine
  • News
  • Exclusives
  • Applications
  • Technology
  • Market
  • Other
  • Top 40
  • Buyers Guide
  • Hygiene Directory
  • Current / Back Issues
    Features
    Editorial
    Columns
    Digital Edition
    Southeast Asia Edition
    eNewsletter Archive
    Editorial Guidelines
    Subscribe Now
    Advertise Now
    eBook
    Top Features
    Moist Toilet Wipes Lead 2024 Growth, Baby Wipes Decline, and General-Purpose Wipes Bounce Back

    Dissolvable Wipes. Will They Be the Industry’s Next Big Thing?

    Loo Wipes Feature Recyclable Packaging

    Roofing & Construction Update

    Needlepunch Market Report
    Company Cameo
    Financial News
    Machinery Equipment
    New Products
    Nonwovens News
    Patent Review
    People in the News
    Supplier News
    Top News
    Live From Shows
    Top News
    Essity Opens Distribution Center in Colombia

    Pull-Ups Debuts Potty Training App

    Ontex Announces New Hires

    Sandler Launches layerlab

    Andrex Adds Odor Control Technology to Wipes Line
    Nonwovens Insights
    Online Exclusives
    Adult Incontinence
    Absorbent Core
    Antimicrobials
    Apparel
    Automotive and Transportation
    Face Masks
    Chemicals / Adhesives
    Construction
    Contract Services
    Diaper, Baby
    Electronics
    Feminine Hygiene
    Fibers
    Filtration
    Flame Retardance
    Geotextile / Agrotextile
    Home Products
    Hygiene Film/Components
    Industrial / Institutional
    Inspection / Quality Control
    Machinery and Equipment
    Medical
    Wipes

    Pull-Ups Debuts Potty Training App

    Harrisons Launches Industrial Range of Wipes

    Ahlstrom Introduces Optipad

    Cottonsie Launches Disposable Cotton Diaper

    Executive Talks: Hero Medical Technologies' Debbie Kantor
    Air Through Bonding
    Airlaid
    Carded/Carding
    Chemical Bonded
    Composite
    Meltblown
    Needlepunch
    Nanotechnology
    Spunbond
    Spunbond/Spunmelt
    Spunlace
    Thermal Bonded
    Wetlaid

    SGN Introduces Next Generation Spunbond

    KTEX Nonwovens to Showcase Innovations

    SGN Offers Next Generation Nonwoven Material

    Elixxr to Launch Pulp-Based Nonwovens

    Alear Silk Road New Materials to Add Three Spunlace Lines
    China
    Eastern Europe/Russia
    India
    Middle East/North Africa
    North America
    Pacific Rim
    South/Central America
    Turkey
    Western Europe

    China's Nonwovens Output Records the Largest Post-Pandemic Growth

    Trützschler India Relocates Manufacturing Plant

    Optima Expands in India

    Supreme Group Acquires Thai JV Company

    Asia Wipes Summit Held in Shanghai
    Associations
    Contracts / Awards
    Education
    Facilities / Capacity
    Green / Sustainability
    Legal / Regulatory
    Market Data
    Flushability
    Mergers and Acquisitions
    Product Improvement / Innovation
    R&D/Basic Research
    Shows / Events

    Cottonsie Launches Disposable Cotton Diaper

    IDEA, FiltXpo Held in Miami Beach

    Sumitomo Acquires ActivStyle

    Trützschler India Relocates Manufacturing Plant

    Rieter to Acquire Barmag from OC Oerlikon
    Chart
    Companies
    All Companies
    Categories
    Company Profiles
    Add New Company
    International Buyers Guide Companies
    Dukane Center of Excellence for Personal Care, Nonwovens and Packaging

    Alliance Machine and Engraving

    Welspun Global Brands Ltd

    ELSNER

    Investkonsult Sweden
    Brands
    Brand Owners
    • Magazine
      • Current / Back Issues
      • Features
      • Editorial
      • Columns
      • Digital Edition
      • Southeast Asia Edition
      • eNewsletter Archive
      • Editorial Guidelines
      • Subscribe Now
      • Advertise Now
    • Breaking News
    • Buyers Guide
      • All Companies
      • Categories
      • Company Profiles
      • Add Your Company
    • Applications
      • Absorbent Core
      • Adult Incontinence
      • Antimicrobials
      • Apparel
      • Automotive and Transportation
      • Chemicals / Adhesives
      • Construction
      • Contract Services
      • Diaper, Baby
      • Electronics
      • Feminine Hygiene
      • Fibers
      • Filtration
      • Flame Retardance
      • Geotextile / Agrotextile
      • Home Products
      • Hygiene Film/Components
      • Industrial / Institutional
      • Inspection / Quality Control
      • Machinery and Equipment
      • Medical
      • Wipes
      • Face Masks
    • Technology
      • Air Through Bonding
      • Airlaid
      • Carded/Carding
      • Chemical Bonded
      • Composite
      • Meltblown
      • Needlepunch
      • Nanotechnology
      • Spunbond
      • Spunlace
      • Thermal Bonded
      • Wetlaid
      • Spunbond/Spunmelt
    • Market
      • China
      • Eastern Europe/Russia
      • India
      • Middle East/North Africa
      • North America
      • Pacific Rim
      • South/Central America
      • Turkey
      • Western Europe
    • Other
      • Associations
      • Contracts / Awards
      • Education
      • Facilities / Capacity
      • Green / Sustainability
      • Legal / Regulatory
      • Market Data
      • Mergers and Acquisitions
      • Product Improvement / Innovation
      • R&D/Basic Research
      • Shows / Events
      • Flushability
    • Top 40 Companies
      • Chart
      • Companies
    • Online Exclusives
    • Slideshows
    • Hygiene Directory
      • Brands
      • Brand Owners
    • Experts Opinions
    • Videos
    • Podcasts
    • Infographics
    • eBook
    • Whitepapers
    • Events
      • Industry Events
      • Live From Show Events
      • Webinars
      • Live From Asian Connections
    • Jobs
    • Resources
      • Suppliers Gallery
      • Literature Showcase
      • Web Showcase
      • Home Page Showcase
    • About Us
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise With Us
      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms of Use
    Breaking News

    Michigan Researchers Work with P&G to Recycle SAP

    Diaper material to find second life as adhesive

    07.29.21
    University of Michigan team, in partnership with Procter & Gamble, has developed a three-step process untangle superabsorbent polymers rom diapers and recycle them into materials similar to the gooey adhesives used in sticky notes and bandages. Their results are published in Nature Communications.
     
    Anne McNeil, professor of chemistry and macromolecular science and engineering, and Takunda Chazovachii, who recently graduated from U-M with his doctoral degree in polymer chemistry, worked with Procter & Gamble to develop this process. The method needed to be energy-efficient and able to be deployed on an industrial scale.

    Anne McNeil, professor of chemistry and macromolecular science and engineering, and Takunda Chazovachii, who recently graduated from U-M with his doctoral degree in polymer chemistry, worked with Procter & Gamble to develop a three-step process that turns superabsorbent polymers into a reusable material—in this case, adhesives. The method needed to be energy-efficient and able to be deployed on an industrial scale.

    “Mechanical recycling is what most people think about: You separate different plastics based on their identities, chop them up into small pieces, melt them and reuse them, which lowers the quality of the product,” said U-M chemist Anne McNeil, corresponding author of the paper.
    Mechanical recycling leads to lower quality materials because different companies’ plastics are constructed differently: The polymers can be different chain lengths or altered with different additives and dyes.

    “There’s just so many problems, everything usually gets downcycled and ends up as carpet fibers or park benches,” said McNeil, whose lab focuses on the chemical recycling of plastics. “Chemical recycling is this idea of using chemistry and chemical transformations to make a value-added material, or at least a material as valuable as the original.”

    The qualities that generally make plastics desirable, such as toughness and durability, are also responsible for their difficulty in recycling. In particular, polymers are difficult to break down because they are held together by stable bonds.

     “Superabsorbent polymers are particularly difficult to recycle because they are designed to resist degradation and retain water permanently,” Chazovachii said. “The superabsorbent polymers and adhesives are both derived from acrylic acid. This common origin inspired our recycling idea.”

    The polymers in superabsorbent materials look like a loosely woven fishing net, McNeil says, except instead of a honeycomb mesh, these polymers have a crosslink every 2,000 units, which is more than enough to create an insoluble network structure. To recycle these materials, the researchers needed to find a way to delink the network polymer into water soluble chains. Chazovachii found that when these polymers are heated either in the presence of acid or base, their crosslinks are broken.

    The results of this study are published in Nature Communications.
    Related Searches
    • Green/Sustainability
    Related Knowledge Center
    • Green/Sustainability
    Suggested For You
    Americhem Inc. Americhem Inc.
    ASI, Division of Thermal Technologies, Inc. ASI, Division of Thermal Technologies, Inc.
    EDANA to Host Circular Nonwovens Forum EDANA to Host Circular Nonwovens Forum
    Poligof Expands Breathables Films Business for Hygiene Poligof Expands Breathables Films Business for Hygiene
    PLMA Postpones Private Label Trade Show PLMA Postpones Private Label Trade Show
    GPMI Expands Disinfectant Wipes Production GPMI Expands Disinfectant Wipes Production
    Glatfelter Announces Price Increases Glatfelter Announces Price Increases
    Shemesh Automation to Exhibit at INDEX20 Shemesh Automation to Exhibit at INDEX20
    Tufropes to Install Spunlace Line in India Tufropes to Install Spunlace Line in India
    Harald Stini Resigns from Tenowo Harald Stini Resigns from Tenowo
    Speed. Automation. Efficiency. Speed. Automation. Efficiency.
    Flexible Wipes Production Lines Flexible Wipes Production Lines
    Parentgiving Expands Dry Direct Incontinence Product Line Parentgiving Expands Dry Direct Incontinence Product Line
    Precision Textiles Launches New Website Precision Textiles Launches New Website
    Techtextil North America Held Successfully in Raleigh Techtextil North America Held Successfully in Raleigh

    Related Buyers Guide Companies

    • Americhem Inc.

      Americhem Inc.

      ...
      Robert Baldy, Business Director, Fibers & Packaging 05.01.24

    • ASI, Division of Thermal Technologies, Inc.

      ...
      Angela Krueger, President 04.23.24

    • EDANA to Host Circular Nonwovens Forum

      Event to focus on driving circularity in nonwovens
      09.22.21


    • Hygiene Film/Components
      Poligof Expands Breathables Films Business for Hygiene

      Poligof Expands Breathables Films Business for Hygiene

      Company will add blown extrusion, flexographic press capabilities in Italy
      09.22.21

    • Associations | Shows/Events

      PLMA Postpones Private Label Trade Show

      Annual event moved to January 2022
      09.22.21

    Loading, Please Wait..
    Breaking News
    • EDANA Co-Signs Statement on State-Run PROs
    • Essity Opens Distribution Center in Colombia
    • Pull-Ups Debuts Potty Training App
    • Ontex Announces New Hires
    • Sandler Launches layerlab
    View Breaking News >
    CURRENT ISSUE

    May 2025

    • 2025 Company Capabilities
    • View More >



    Cookies help us to provide you with an excellent service. By using our website, you declare yourself in agreement with our use of cookies.
    You can obtain detailed information about the use of cookies on our website by clicking on "More information”.

    • About Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms And Conditions
    • Contact Us

    follow us

    Subscribe

    Latest Breaking News From Nutraceuticals World

    Gattefossé Opens New Facilities in Mumbai, India
    TSI Group Unveils myHMB + Vitamin D Logo
    Indena to Showcase Metabolic, Brain Health Solutions at In-Vitality 2024

    Latest Breaking News From Coatings World

    EPS Launches Fluorosurfactant-free Acrylic Emulsion for Architectural Coatings
    Chemetall Moves Towards Sustainability Goals
    X-Rite Launches Its CiF3200 Imaging Benchtop Spectrophotometer

    Latest Breaking News From Medical Product Outsourcing

    StimLabs's Umbilical Cord-Derived Wound Care Product Released in U.S.
    New Medical-Grade Bio-Based PVC Compounds Introduced
    Croívalve Reports 1st Tricuspid Coaptation Valve Implant in U.S. Feasibility Study

    Latest Breaking News From Contract Pharma

    Neurocrine Bioscience’s CRENESSITY Becomes Commercially Available in the U.S.
    Roche's Parkinson's Disease Drug Misses Primary Endpoint
    PTC Therapeutics Submits Vantiquinone NDA to FDA

    Latest Breaking News From Beauty Packaging

    Weekly Recap: Coty Sells SKKN, Henkel Recall, Awards, & More
    Rare Beauty to Host Pop-Up Event with Sephora UK
    Cloud Haircare Expands to Walmart Stores Nationwide

    Latest Breaking News From Happi

    Cosmetify Names Nikkie de Jager the World’s Most Powerful Beauty Influencer
    Big Lips in the Small Wonder
    L’Oréal’s Bioprinted Skin & Dove’s Deodorant Launch

    Latest Breaking News From Ink World

    Sonoco Releases 2024 Corporate Sustainability Report
    Accredo Packaging Earns Minority Supplier Certification
    DuPont Unveils Brand Identity for Qnity Spin-Off

    Latest Breaking News From Label & Narrow Web

    Mexico's Flexopolis adds second Bobst flexo press
    Paramount Labels installs Rotatek Brava 450
    Esko teams with Bobst for smartGRAVURE System

    Latest Breaking News From Nonwovens Industry

    EDANA Co-Signs Statement on State-Run PROs
    Essity Opens Distribution Center in Colombia
    Pull-Ups Debuts Potty Training App

    Latest Breaking News From Orthopedic Design & Technology

    David Thordarson Takes Charge of American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society
    UPM Biomedicals Launches FibGel Injectable Nanocellulose Hydrogel for Medical Devices
    ONWARD Medical Attracts €50 Million in Capital

    Latest Breaking News From Printed Electronics Now

    Emerson Reports 2Q 2025 Results, Updates 2025 Outlook
    Vuzix and Fraunhofer IPMS Announce Major MicroLED Milestone
    DuPont Unveils Brand Identity for Qnity, Future Electronics Spin-Off

    Copyright © 2025 Rodman Media. All rights reserved. Use of this constitutes acceptance of our privacy policy The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Rodman Media.

    AD BLOCKER DETECTED

    Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors.
    Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker.


    FREE SUBSCRIPTION Already a subscriber? Login