Carpet Recycling Technology

With California passing laws that require the carpet industry to reduce carpet waste in landfills, and other states following suit, carpet recycling technology is more important than ever.

Researchers at Georgia State developed a way to convert carpet waste made from polypropolene (a type of plastic) into “food” for microorganisms such as bacteria, algae and fungus. These microorganisms could convert the waste plastic into other useful products like biopolymers or enzymes.

This technology would make carpet waste biodegradable, keeping it out of landfills, while also producing useful bio-based chemicals.