ABSTRACT
Solid waste generated day-by-day worldwide includes agriculture waste, plant waste, plastic waste, industrial waste, chemical waste and food waste, out of which plastic waste consists of a huge portion. Nowadays, plastic can be seen everywhere and it is irreplaceable with any other material due to its durability, low cost and processability with a broad application range and scope. Excessive dependence on plastic products gives rise to the problem of solid waste consisting of plastics, which pollute water, soil, as well as the environment due to their long-term durability and non-biodegradable nature. At present, plastic waste generation is at its peak, so the recycling of waste plastics through traditional methods is not enough. In this regard, we need the upcycling of solid waste plastics into valuable products like carbon nanomaterials, virgin monomers, liquid fuels and chemical feedstocks through various methods. This strategy of upcycling plastic waste does not only solve the problem of plastic waste management, but pollution control canalso generate wealth. In this book chapter we discuss the recycling and upcycling of discarded plastic waste into value-added products using numerous techniques and then the application of upcycled products to various fields to generate wealth and sustain an equilibrium between ecology and economy.
