Desenvolvimento de massa acrílica texturizada para o setor imobiliário com reuso de copos descartáveis de poliestireno

Abstract

The advent of plastic revolutionized human life. A versatile, safe, hygienic, inexpensive, and long-lasting component. However, of the large amount of plastic produced annually, about half of it is discarded after being used only once. Single-use plastics include bags, cutlery, straws, packaging and cups, this latter being object of study in this research. The final disposal of these materials is difficult, creating environmental problems and even though reprocessing is a form of recycling and incineration is a form of energy use, in one way or another the vast majority of these residues will end their life in landfills or the oceans. Polystyrene is a plastic widely used for its characteristics such as transparency, high brightness and coloring capacity, making it excellent for the composition of packaging for the food industry, as well as disposable cups and cutlery. It is estimated that the lifetime for single-use plastics is less than one year, however, when it comes to plastics for civil construction, the lifetime reaches decades. Thus, as an objective of the following work, the aim was to use mechanically processed polystyrene as an adjunct to the mineral loads of an acrylic mass, to compose a textured mass, in order to prolong the lifetime of this particular plastic, preventing it from being disposed improperly in nature. A textured acrylic mass was composed with 1 part of processed polystyrene for 15 parts of commercial acrylic mass with particles sizes ranging from 1.40mm to less than 0.71mm. The product was evaluated with respect to its drying properties, as well as adherence and resistance to weathering and proved to be functional, satisfactorily meeting the observed parameters, making it clear, therefore, that the incorporation of mechanically processed polystyrene into acrylic masses is an interesting and intelligent strategy with regard to extending the lifetime of this plastic, preventing it from being disposed of incorrectly in landfills, dumps or in the ocean itself.