What is Precious Plastic?
PlasticLab will be based on the experience of Precious Plastic. Precious Plastic is an open-source global initiative aimed at reducing plastic pollution by creating affordable and accessible machines for recycling plastic.
Precious Plastic is based on:
- Recycling machines: Precious Plastic develops simple, affordable machines to shred, melt, and mold plastic. These machines can be built by anyone using plans and designs available online.
- Global community: The project fosters a network of people and organizations worldwide who share knowledge, tools, and resources to improve plastic recycling and create products from this material. The aim is to generate a collaborative movement to change how plastic is handled and, in turn, reduce its harmful environmental impact.
- Circular economy: Precious Plastic is based on the circular economy, where materials are reused and fed back into the production chain instead of ending up as waste. This helps reduce demand for raw materials and minimizes pollution from plastic.
- Recycled products: People using Precious Plastic machines can create various products such as furniture, building materials, accessories, or decorative items, adding value to recycled plastic and contributing to the local economy.
What machines will PlasticLab have?
Plastic identifier
In our case, focusing on recycling plastics found in the environment, most of the time we encounter fragments where visual identification of their origin or type is lost. The plastic identifier allows us to determine the type of material, facilitating correct classification and separation for later recycling.
Shredder
The shredding stage is essential, as it reduces plastic to a specific size so it can be transformed into new products using the other PlasticLab machines. Shredded plastic can come in different sizes and colors, increasing its potential for reuse and value.
Sheet press
The sheet press allows us to create uniform plastic sheets, which can then be worked on or cut for different uses or products.
Extruder
Extrusion is a continuous process in which plastic flakes are fed into a hopper and molded into a continuous line. These lines can be used to make new raw material, such as plastic pellets, or applied creatively, for example, by wrapping them around molds.
Injector
In this process, plastic flakes are heated until melted and injected into a mold, resulting in parts with defined shapes.
Why a PlasticLab in Menorca?
The PRAPs have been designed by the Plastic Free Menorca Alliance in collaboration with Carpintería Manuel Romero, with criteria of functionality, sustainability, and durability.
They have been built from reused pallets, which not only provide weight and stability against wind but also allow safe storage of parasols thanks to the structured walls of the pallet itself.
Each point has informative signage in Catalan, Spanish, and English, making it easy to use for residents and visitors from different backgrounds.
Advised by CIM UPC
During the design and launch phase of PlasticLab Menorca, we received advice from CIM UPC. CIM UPC is UPC’s technological center, a world reference in the field of Advanced Manufacturing.
