Recycled Polymers and their Composites: Processing, Properties and Applications

Recycled Polymers and Their Composites: Processing, Properties and Applications provides a comprehensive and systematic analysis of the full life cycle of recycled polymeric materials and their composites, with a particular focus on their development, characterization, and implementation across a wide range of applications.
This book presents a comprehensive exploration through recycled polymers and polymer-based composites, from the mechanical and thermal recycling of short and long fibers to the processing of recycled thermoplastic composites, waste rubber, polyethylene, polyethylene terephthalate, and polyolefin systems. It also explores the mechanical and thermal properties of recycled plastics and their composites, comparative analyses of recycled and virgin elastomers, and emerging pathways for transforming recycled polymers into high-value materials. Further chapters highlight advanced applications in additive manufacturing, filtration membranes, energy storage systems, and circular economy solutions for biomedical waste.
Organized into two sections, the book first examines the core principles, recycling routes, and reprocessing strategies that underpin the recovery of polymer materials. The second section focuses on materials, properties, and advanced applications, with detailed discussions of recycled plastics, rubber, and composites, as well as their use in innovative technologies and sustainable product development. By combining scientific depth with practical relevance, this book offers readers a clear understanding of the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of recycled polymer systems.

• Highlights the role of recycled fiber reinforcements in fibrous composite systems across a wide range of applications
• Presents the latest advances in composite recycling technologies, including fiber recycling methods, material formulation, and manufacturing processes
• Addresses life cycle assessment methodologies applied to recycled fibers and recycled fibrous composites
• Provides real-world application case studies spanning packaging, building and construction, aerospace, automotive, additive manufacturing, and healthcare

Dr. Hind Abdellaoui is currently a Senior research scientist and R&D Consultant. Her research interests include Polymer composites, hybrid composites, and nanocomposites.

Dr. Sanjay Mavinkere Rangappa is a Principal Research Scientist and Associate Professor at King Mongkut 's University of Technology North Bangkok, Thailand. He also serves as an Advisor within the President' s Office for University Promotion and Development towards International goals. Dr. Rangappa is the Executive Editor of Book Cluster: Fiber Science and Fibrous Composite Materials ( Elsevier), a former Associate Editor of Heliyon (Materials Science), and an Associate Editor of Frontier Materials Journals. He acts as a Board Member and Editor for various international journals in materials science and composites. He has reviewed over 250 international journals, including for Nature, Elsevier, Springer, and Wiley, as well as book proposals and conference submissions. He has published more than 425 articles in top- tier peer- reviewed journals indexed by SCI/Scopus, 13 editorial issues, 100 book chapters, and 70 books as an Editor with leading publishers such as Elsevier, Springer, Taylor & Francis, and Wiley. Additionally, he authored 3 books published by Elsevier and has presented research at numerous national and international conferences. Over 25 of his articles are highly cited in journals like the Journal of Cleaner Production and Carbohydrate Polymers. Dr. Rangappa is the lead editor for several special issues and has a Google Scholar citation count exceeding 39, 000, with an H- index of 100 and An i 100- Index of 475. He holds 1 US Patent, 11 UK Design Patents, 1 Thailand Patent, and 5 Indian patents. He has delivered keynote and invited talks globally, including Russia, South Africa, Malaysia, and India. Currently, he is an Academic Visitor at The University of Portsmouth, UK (2024), with upcoming visiting positions at various Malaysian and Indonesian universities from 2024 to 2027. His research focuses on Natural fiber composites, Polymer Composites, and Advanced Material Technology. He received the ‘Top Peer Reviewer 2019’ award from Publons, and the KMUTNB ‘Outstanding Young Researcher’ (2020) and' Outstanding Researcher’ (2021) awards. Recognized as one of the top 1% most- cited scientists by Stanford University (2019-2025), he ranks 5th in Thailand overall and 2nd In the Polymers category for 2023. He is also listed among the ‘Top 100 Scientists’ in Thailand by AD Scientific Index.

Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Suchart Siengchin is a former President of King Mongkut’s University of Technology North Bangkok and currently serves as the Director of TechnoPark at the same university. He earned his Dipl.-Ing. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Applied Sciences Giessen/Friedberg, Germany in 1999, followed by an M.Sc. in Polymer Technology from the University of Applied Sciences Aalen in 2002, and another M.Sc. in Material Science from Erlangen-Nürnberg University in 2004. He obtained his Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering (Dr.-Ing.) from the Institute for Composite Materials at the University of Kaiserslautern in 2008, including postdoctoral research at Kaiserslautern University and Purdue University's School of Materials Engineering. In 2016, he received his habilitation from Chemnitz University in Saxony, Germany. In 2024, he was honored as an Honorary Fellow by RWTH Aachen University. He has also served as a Lecturer in Production and Material Engineering at the Sirindhorn International Thai-German Graduate School of Engineering, KMUTNB, and has been a full Professor and President of KMUTNB. He received the Outstanding Researcher Award in 2010, 2012, and 2013 at KMUTNB. His research focuses on Polymer Processing and Composite Materials. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the journal Applied Science and Engineering Progress, a Q1 indexed journal on Scopus, and has authored over 600 peer-reviewed journal articles, 15 editorial contributions, more than 100 book chapters, one authored book, and over 50 edited books. He has presented at more than 70 international and national conferences related to Materials Science and Engineering. Recognized as one of the world’s top 2% scientists by Stanford University for 2021- 2022, he received the National Excellence Researcher Award (Engineering and Research Industry) from Thailand's National Research Council in 2021, and has been listed as a Highly Cited Researcher in 2025 by Clarivate.