Research Article
Jun 1972
Use of Irradiation in Plastic Wastes Disposal
Authors: Mansaru Tanaka, AM.ASCE, and Tsuyoshi MifuneAuthor Affiliations
Publication: Journal of the Sanitary Engineering Division
Volume 98, Issue 3
Abstract
The feasibility of utilizing irradiation to assist in plastic waste disposal was investigated. This was based on the observation that most plastic materials become brittle upon irradiation. Sheets of polyvinyl chloride and polyethylene were bombarded with 1.3 MeV electrons generated by a Van de Graaff accelerator. They were tensile-tested at room temperature. The strength of the plastic materials was substantially reduced by irradiation, and the ductility was completely eliminated upon irradiation of about 3 x 1016 e/cm² in polyvinyl chloride and 1 x 1016 e/cm² in high density polyethylene. Based on the present experimental results, it was estimated that to eliminate the ductility of 1 g of polyvinyl chloride the material would require irradiation for about 17 min using a 1,000 curie Sr89 radiation source (assuming 100% efficiency). Thus, utilization of radiation sources for plastic waste treatment seems impractical for large quantities.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of the Sanitary Engineering Division
Volume 98 • Issue 3 • June 1972
Pages: 561 - 567
Copyright
© 1972 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Published in print: Jun 1972
Published online: Feb 12, 2021
Permissions
Request permissions for this article.
Authors
Affiliations
Mansaru Tanaka, AM.ASCE
Asst. Prof.; Dept. of Civ. Engrg., Wayne State Univ., Detroit, MI
Tsuyoshi Mifune
Sumitomo Electric Ind., Inc., Osaka, Japan; formerly, Asst. Prof., Dept. of Chemical Engrg. and Material Sciences, Wayne State Univ., Detroit, MI
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.
Cited by
View Options
Get Access
Access content
Please select your options to get access
Log in/Register
Log in via your institution (Shibboleth)
ASCE Members:
Please log in to see member pricing
Purchase
Save for later Item saved, go to cart Information on ASCE Library Cards
ASCE Library Cards let you download journal articles, proceedings papers, and available book chapters across the entire ASCE Library platform. ASCE Library Cards remain active for 24 months or until all downloads are used. Note: This content will be debited as one download at time of checkout.
Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
Get Access
Access content
Please select your options to get access
Log in/Register
Log in via your institution (Shibboleth)
ASCE Members:
Please log in to see member pricing
Purchase
Save for later Item saved, go to cart Information on ASCE Library Cards
ASCE Library Cards let you download journal articles, proceedings papers, and available book chapters across the entire ASCE Library platform. ASCE Library Cards remain active for 24 months or until all downloads are used. Note: This content will be debited as one download at time of checkout.
Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.