Thermal and mechanical analysis of recycled glass filled PET for printer part

Continuous and rapid technological advancement has dramatically improved the way we live. It also means that electronic products are being discarded faster than ever before. The increasing amount of electronic trash is definitely a growing pollution problem as more electronics join the league of waste stream in coming years. With every printing products sold, many more ink cartridges are produced. Ink cartridges are one of Hewlett Packard's key products. Because its large scale volume the impact that the product has on the environment requires attention. Product take back of used cartridges is necessary to provide our customers with an environmentally responsible end-of-life solution and also enables us to reduce our plastic waste. This paper presents the results on recycled glass reinforced Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) usage in printer part. The recycled glass filled PET is compounded by Lavergne Group, Montreal, Canada. The stream of recycled PET feedstock is from 75% purified water bottle flake grade and 25% purified used ink cartridges from Hewlett Packard. Both are reprocessed to use on HP's printer model. Experimental studies were carried out to investigate the mechanical and thermal properties of the recycled glass-filled material. The experimental data obtained is then measured against comparable industrial data available on glass-filled PET product. Printer parts were subsequently molded and undergone product functional qualifications. Thermal analysis technique was applied to understand the findings from the qualification. The obtained thermograms from Differential Scanning Calorimetry provided quantitative and qualitative information about the physical and phase changes that involve endothermic or exothermic processes. These data will be extensively discussed in this paper. This study is a concerted industrial effort from several parties working on waste reduction opportunities. Not only will produce certain cost savings, it will also reflect our environmental pursuit towards the successful marriage of waste reduction without compromising quality and functionality.