Recycling cellulose-rich waste
The UK alone produces over 3 billion soiled Absorbent Hygiene Products (AHPs) such as nappies and adult incontinence pads (Mintel 2019; NHS 2018; WRAP 2015). There is a need to improve on current disposal of such AHPs from medical and care home sources as well as household waste collections. This industry-academia collaboration in the form of a three-year Innovate UK-funded Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) project hopes to use the principle of AHP material re-assignment and re-valuation to drive sustainable disposal of waste and to inform future product design to facilitate better recycling.