Sustainable Consumption Challenge

A two-tiered novel solution for

the recycling of oil-stained
cellulosic materials
Gideon Tay Yee Chuen, Emily
Carder, Emma B Hanisko, Jialin Ni
THE Junior Academy
New York Academy of Sciences
The Problem

Oil and grease-stained paper/cardboard boxes used for food packaging

(e.g. pizza/doughnut boxes) cannot be recycled
◎ Because oil/grease prevent the binding of cellulosic fibers, rendering
paper quality severely poor and unusable, and
◎ Cellulosic fibers of cardboard/paper can’t be separated from oil and
grease during the pulping process of recycling.1
◎ This leads to entire batches of pulp in the recycling process being ruined
due to oil and grease contamination.
In USA, discarded paper/cardboard accounts for ~30% of the Municipal
Solid Waste volume, most of which is unrecoverable due to contamination.2
Oil/grease contamination is estimated to cost recycling businesses over
US$700 million annually (lost batches and recycling machine damages).3
 Our two-tiered novel solution
Tier 1:
Consumers and
Businesses
AntiGrease
◎ Our peelable product to be put on top of
cardboard used by consumers and
businesses (such as pizza boxes)
◎ The impermeable side will have an
adhesive and stick to the cardboard,
while the absorbent side will face up to
collect grease
◎ Consumers can easily peel off the
Antigrease and dispose of it separately
without contaminating the cardboard
Tier 2:
Recycling Plants
New Recycling Process
◎ Oil and grease-stained cardboard/paper will
be separated from other products
◎ The normal recycling process will continue,
until a paper-water slurry is formed11
◎ A low density amphipathic surfactant will be
stirred into the slurry, which will separate
the oil and grease from the cellulose fibers
◎ This will be left to settle; the leftover clean
slurry can be used to produce more
cardboard or paper as normal
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Our Solutions
A detailed explanation

4
 ~AntiGrease~

AntiGrease is a three-layer, lightweight sheet

◎ Top Layer: Oil absorbent material (such as rice flour or cellulose)
◎ Middle Layer: Impermeable oil stopper (such as waxed paper)
◎ Bottom Layer: Food safe adhesive (polymer adhesive)

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AntiGrease: experimentation with absorbent materials

Quantitative Data
Hypothesis: AntiGrease sheets will inhibit the absorption of grease into cardboard and
will easily peel off to be discarded, thereby preventing contamination and allowing for
further recycling.
Mean Standard Mean Standard
◎ Absorbent Prototypes: Rice Flour, Initial Deviation Absorption Deviation
Cornstarch, Cellulose, and Hemp Pulp Mass of Capacity
Absorption per gram
◎ Five trials were performed for each Layer (g) (g/g)
absorbent layer
Rice Flour 1.60 0.55 1.300 0.975

Cornstarch 2.80 0.45 0.464 0.300

Cellulose 10.20 0.84 0.440 0.062

Hemp Pulp 0.04 0 34.35⃰⃰ 0

6 ＊the hemp pulp has a high vale because it’s very light, but can hold about 1.5ml (1.3 g) of oil
AntiGrease: experimentation with absorbent materials

Qualitative Data

Rice Flour: Oil could be rubbed off by the touch of a finger and had a distinct oily feel.

Cornstarch: The oil was not easily absorbed, leaving much of the oil on top of the sheet.
There was also an oily feel when touched.

Cellulose: Easily absorbed the oil, and had a dry feel when touched.

Hemp Pulp: Also absorbed the oil easily. Retained a dry feel when very little oil was
added, but as the amount of oil added neared the maximum of the hemp pulp, the
surface became wet.
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AntiGrease: Prototype

Prototype Using Hemp Pulp

- Although hemp pulp retained a wet feeling when a lot of oil was added,
it is still the most cost-efficient and has the most mean absorption
capacity per gram. It was also very easily accessible to us.

We wanted to test out hemp pulp in AntiGrease, since it is not always that the
AntiGrease will be heavily saturated with oil. We wanted to see how the hemp
pulp could handle a regular amount of oil in food products, and therefore we
created the prototype using hemp pulp.
-
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AntiGrease: Prototype

Prototype Using Hemp Pulp

Hemp pulp sheets were glued together using a
food-safe glue made from a vinegar and gelatin. The
sheets were then glued to a baking sheet of the same
size. This became the AntiGrease. The AntiGrease was
placed on a cardboard placket, and fried potatoes
were placed on top of the AntiGrease. The fried
potatoes stood for an hour before being taken off. The
surface of the AntiGrease was very slightly slippery, but
not noticeably so. It was definitely not as wet as before
when absorbing 1.5ml of oil.

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AntiGrease: experimentation with absorbent materials

Conclusions

◎ Rice Flour cannot be used as an absorbent because it leaves an oily surface

◎ Hemp Pulp is the best solution for AntiGrease where the oil amount is not too
significant, for example Pizza.
◎ Cornstarch is too messy to be applied to the
impermeable base
◎ Cellulose is a great absorbent, but it is heavier and
likely to be more expensive than the other products
tested

The next steps would be to test more candidates and

create a better prototype model for experimentation.
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AntiGrease: Market Research
Outline
Qualitative feedback was obtained from 20 potential users of the AntiGrease
(anyone who consumes oily foods from cellulosic packaging)
Question asked: “What is your general feedback on the AntiGrease product?”
General feedback obtained:
Findings (general feedback):
◎ Polymer adhesive is user-friendly, as it makes AntiGrease easily peelable
◎ AntiGrease is lightweight and convenient
◎ AntiGrease, being oil-absorbing, makes the food more appetizing
◎ Concerns of possible health effects of adhesive
Conclusions: Generally, market is receptive to product. The only concern of
health effects is fine since polymer adhesive used is non-toxic,4 and does not
get into contact with food when AntiGrease is used normally
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 AntiGrease: Feasibility— cost calculations

Cost/ US$

Absorption layer
0.01142 0.00519 0.00107 0.000154
or or or
(cornstarch)5 (rice flour)6 (cellulosic)7 (Hemp pulp)8

Wax Paper9 0.003

Polymer adhesive10 0.04 (assuming 0.01cm uniform adhesive layer)

Total approx. cost (w/o

economies of scale) 0.043154 to 0.05442 per 100cm3, depending on absorbent used

◎ Economically viable and environmentally sustainable

◎ Appealing to businesses: brings little additional costs, while providing
the added benefit of ethical marketing (i.e. boosting brand image by
using a product meant to ensure environmental sustainability).
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 ~Tier 2: Modification of recycling processes~
A new method of removing oils from contaminated cellulosic materials
(cardboard/paper) so they may be recycled, rather than disposed.

1) Low density 2)Mixture

surfactants added to stirred, then left
Oil-contaminated Paper-water slurry
remove oil to settle
4) Continue
cardboard/paper with oil contaminant 3) Oil-surfactant
Normal
micelles and excess recycling process
recycling
surfactant removed as per normal
process
from mixture surface with clean slurry

Clean Normal recycling process New, recycled

cardboard/paper paper/cardboard

Recycling Plant
 Wrapping Up
Real-life application and conclusion

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 ~Commercial viability and sustainability~
Our solutions bring net financial gain for businesses in the long run:
◎ AntiGrease: low cost of product increases variable costs of businesses
minimally, while attracting ethical customers and boosting brand image
may lead to increased sales and thus profit. Employees working for an
ethical business also increases their motivation and productivity.
◎ Novel recycling method: requires small modifications (additional steps) to
current recycling process, increasing its ease of adoption by recycling
businesses. Meanwhile, businesses operating costs decrease in the long run
with no large batches of pulp lost, and less machinery spoilage due to oil.
Commercialisation strategy: Get approval from local food authorities for
AntiGrease use; engage a small business to produce AntiGrease batch-wise;
conduct sales pitches to local businesses to adopt its use.
For the recycling method, further investigation and tie-up with engineers for
automation of new process would be helpful for more effective implementation.
 Conclusion: An Overview
Experimentation
Tier 1
AntiGrease’s efficacy is
dependent on absorbent
material used. Some
prototypes are effective.
Theory
Tier 2
The solution shows promise in
theory, though additional
investigations and industrial
tests have to be done.
Market Research Cost Evaluation
Household consumers are AntiGrease production cost is
receptive towards AntiGrease. low, and its use brings a net gain
to businesses by boosting brand
image at little cost.
Conclusion
Commercial viability and sustainability
Our two-tiered solution holds great commercial potential, as
adopters of our solutions (mostly businesses) have a net
financial benefit, while bringing positive impact to the
environment. By making previously unrecyclable
oil-contaminated cellulosic materials recyclable, we increase
sustainability of human consumption.
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Bibliography

1. http://earth911.com/food/the-pizza-box-mystery/
2. https://archive.epa.gov/epawaste/nonhaz/municipal/web/html/
3. http://slice.seriouseats.com/2013/04/can-you-recycle-pizza-boxes-kinda-sorta-maybe.html
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8. http://www.hemphasis.net/Paper/paper_files/hempvtree.htm
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11. https://earth911.com/food/the-pizza-box-mystery/