Germany is tackling its mounting plastic waste crisis head-on with an innovative approach led by the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials (IFAM). In 2023 alone, the country generated a staggering 5.6 million metric tons of plastic waste—most of it single-use packaging consumed in homes. With less than a third of that being recyclable, scientists are under pressure to find new ways to reuse this waste.
Fraunhofer IFAM has developed a cutting-edge system that converts everyday household plastic waste into high-quality filaments used for 3D printing. The breakthrough comes at a critical time as industries increasingly demand sustainable materials for manufacturing.
Dr. Dirk Godlinski, project manager in the Composite Technology working group at Fraunhofer IFAM, explained that one of the major hurdles was ensuring the recycled material met strict requirements for purity, consistency, and size. “It’s not enough just to melt down plastic,” he said. “We needed to produce material with reliable, high-quality properties.”
To help meet these challenges, Fraunhofer teamed up with Dr. Silke Eckhardt, a professor at Hochschule Bremen—City University of Applied Sciences, who specializes in sustainable energy systems and resource efficiency. Eckhardt highlighted the added difficulty of using post-consumer plastic, which is not only highly variable but often contaminated.
Her team tackled the problem in the university’s laboratories for Circular Economy. First, they ground and washed the waste plastic, then used float-sink separation to remove impurities. Near-infrared technology helped them identify and extract foreign plastics. After refining the material down to a precise grain size, they achieved an impressive 99.8% purity level.
The clean plastic was then returned to Fraunhofer IFAM, where it was transformed into homogeneous polypropylene—a versatile, durable plastic. The material was processed in an industrial extruder, where precise control of temperature, pressure, and screw geometry was key. Heated to 392°F (200°C), the plastic was formed into fine strands just 0.002 inches in diameter, perfect for use in 3D printing.
Using these recycled filaments, the team successfully printed their first components, such as caps, marking a milestone in sustainable manufacturing.
Looking ahead, researchers are refining the process even further. By incorporating additives like glass fibers, they aim to produce high-performance components for use in automotive and aerospace applications.
“Increasing the demand for recycled materials is important,” Dr. Eckhardt emphasized. “Especially with regard to climate change, we need to think about resource efficiency. The circular economy is becoming more and more important.”
Dr. Godlinski echoed the sentiment: “The more waste we reuse and recycle, the more energy and resources we can conserve.”
By Impact Lab
