{"id":{"repo_id":"vt","oai_identifier":"oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/141130"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/vt/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/141130","repository":{"repo_id":"vt","name":"Virginia Tech","base_url":"https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Smart Re-Manufacturing of Recycled Plastics and Polymers using Sensor-based and High-throughput Experimentation Formats","abstract":"The emergence of a circular economy associated with products derived from recycled plastics and polymers and the continued demand for creating sustainable polymer manufacturing systems has provided new opportunities and incentives for the quality-controlled re-processing and manufacturing of recycled materials, such as recycled plastics and polymer, such as using smart manufacturing principles. Likewise, there remains a need to identify environmentally benign (i.e., green) material formulations and processes for sustainable re-manufacturing based on smart manufacturing principles of sensing, automation, and data analytics. However, traditional approaches for process monitoring of plastic re-manufacturing operations are generally limited with respect to lack of online sensing technology for characterization of the reprocessed polymer material's quality, specifically composition and properties, and lack of rapid, efficient, and high-throughput experimental-based material screening and design are foundational challenges that limit industrial progress. Toward addressing these challenges, the United States started the Materials Genome Initiative aims to accelerate the pace and efficiency of discovering new materials, such as derived from recycled plastics and polymers, through the creation of new experimental tools and processes, such as for autonomous experimentation. While progress has been made in several material domains, including electronic and soft materials, relative less work has been done in the area of recycled plastics and polymers, such as for diverse materials, including electrospun or structural materials used in tissue engineering or construction applications, respectively.A key factor motivating this work is the limited availability of experimental tools, particularly sensing platforms capable of enabling process monitoring and material synthesis, characterization, and screening in integrated online, low-volume, and high-throughput formats for polymeric waste. This dissertation expands the online sensing and high-throughput screening tools smart re-processing and -manufacturing of recycled plastics and polymer, with particular focus on solvent-based re-processing methods. In particular, this dissertation is driven by a novel platform sensing technology of the piezoelectric-excited milli-cantilever (PEMC), which exhibits a self-exciting and sensing design and dip-stick form factor that enables the monitoring and characterization of recycled polymers and plastics in on-line, low-volume, and high-throughput formats. By characterizing the dynamic and net change responses of PEMC sensors after 60 minutes of electrospun material deposition, this study established performance metrics to evaluate polymer solutions, thermoplastic coatings, and solvent-based polymer re-processing applications. Next, PEMC sensors were leveraged for screening of composition-property relations of polymer-reinforced concrete using a low-volume measurement format, extending the applications of PEMC sensors to characterization of composite structural materials with recycled polymers. Finally, leveraging the established dynamic range for solvent and composite based recycling, PEMC sensors were utilized in a low-volume, high-throughput format to screen green solvents and blend formulations for polymeric waste. This dissertation advances a sensing platform technology based on piezoelectric milli-cantilevers for the accelerated discovery and engineering of recycled materials, particularly in solvent and composite systems","abstract_html":"The emergence of a circular economy associated with products derived from recycled plastics and polymers and the continued demand for creating sustainable polymer manufacturing systems has provided new opportunities and incentives for the quality-controlled re-processing and manufacturing of recycled materials, such as recycled plastics and polymer, such as using smart manufacturing principles. Likewise, there remains a need to identify environmentally benign (i.e., green) material formulations and processes for sustainable re-manufacturing based on smart manufacturing principles of sensing, automation, and data analytics. However, traditional approaches for process monitoring of plastic re-manufacturing operations are generally limited with respect to lack of online sensing technology for characterization of the reprocessed polymer material's quality, specifically composition and properties, and lack of rapid, efficient, and high-throughput experimental-based material screening and design are foundational challenges that limit industrial progress. Toward addressing these challenges, the United States started the Materials Genome Initiative aims to accelerate the pace and efficiency of discovering new materials, such as derived from recycled plastics and polymers, through the creation of new experimental tools and processes, such as for autonomous experimentation. While progress has been made in several material domains, including electronic and soft materials, relative less work has been done in the area of recycled plastics and polymers, such as for diverse materials, including electrospun or structural materials used in tissue engineering or construction applications, respectively.A key factor motivating this work is the limited availability of experimental tools, particularly sensing platforms capable of enabling process monitoring and material synthesis, characterization, and screening in integrated online, low-volume, and high-throughput formats for polymeric waste. This dissertation expands the online sensing and high-throughput screening tools smart re-processing and -manufacturing of recycled plastics and polymer, with particular focus on solvent-based re-processing methods. In particular, this dissertation is driven by a novel platform sensing technology of the piezoelectric-excited milli-cantilever (PEMC), which exhibits a self-exciting and sensing design and dip-stick form factor that enables the monitoring and characterization of recycled polymers and plastics in on-line, low-volume, and high-throughput formats. By characterizing the dynamic and net change responses of PEMC sensors after 60 minutes of electrospun material deposition, this study established performance metrics to evaluate polymer solutions, thermoplastic coatings, and solvent-based polymer re-processing applications. Next, PEMC sensors were leveraged for screening of composition-property relations of polymer-reinforced concrete using a low-volume measurement format, extending the applications of PEMC sensors to characterization of composite structural materials with recycled polymers. Finally, leveraging the established dynamic range for solvent and composite based recycling, PEMC sensors were utilized in a low-volume, high-throughput format to screen green solvents and blend formulations for polymeric waste. This dissertation advances a sensing platform technology based on piezoelectric milli-cantilevers for the accelerated discovery and engineering of recycled materials, particularly in solvent and composite systems","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Anderson, Lester"],"institution":"Virginia Tech","degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy","degree_level":"doctoral","degree_discipline":"Macromolecular Science and Engineering","degree_department":"Graduate School","school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":["Johnson, Blake"],"committee_members":["Kong, Zhenyu","Jia, Xiaoting","Goldstein, Aaron S."],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026-02-03","date_published":"2026-02-03","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:07Z","subjects":["sensing","high-throughput experimentation","Materials Genome Initiative","recycled materials","green solvents","sustainable manufacturing","re-manufacturing","re-processing","process monitoring","material design","circular economy"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["In Copyright"],"rights_urls":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:45140"],"render_values":[{"text":"vt_gsexam:45140","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/10919/141130","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.committeechair","label":"Committee Chair","values":["Johnson, Blake"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["Kong, Zhenyu","Jia, Xiaoting","Goldstein, Aaron S."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.department","label":"Department","values":["Graduate School"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Anderson, Lester"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2026-02-04T09:00:24Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2026-02-04T09:00:24Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2026-02-03"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Virginia Tech"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Macromolecular Science and Engineering"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["doctoral"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["sensing","high-throughput experimentation","Materials Genome Initiative","recycled materials","green solvents","sustainable manufacturing","re-manufacturing","re-processing","process monitoring","material design","circular economy"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language.iso","label":"Language (ISO)","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright"]},{"key":"dc:rights.uri","label":"Rights URI","values":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:45140"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/141130"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The emergence of a circular economy associated with products derived from recycled plastics and polymers and the continued demand for creating sustainable polymer manufacturing systems has provided new opportunities and incentives for the quality-controlled re-processing and manufacturing of recycled materials, such as recycled plastics and polymer, such as using smart manufacturing principles. Likewise, there remains a need to identify environmentally benign (i.e., green) material formulations and processes for sustainable re-manufacturing based on smart manufacturing principles of sensing, automation, and data analytics. However, traditional approaches for process monitoring of plastic re-manufacturing operations are generally limited with respect to lack of online sensing technology for characterization of the reprocessed polymer material's quality, specifically composition and properties, and lack of rapid, efficient, and high-throughput experimental-based material screening and design are foundational challenges that limit industrial progress. Toward addressing these challenges, the United States started the Materials Genome Initiative aims to accelerate the pace and efficiency of discovering new materials, such as derived from recycled plastics and polymers, through the creation of new experimental tools and processes, such as for autonomous experimentation. While progress has been made in several material domains, including electronic and soft materials, relative less work has been done in the area of recycled plastics and polymers, such as for diverse materials, including electrospun or structural materials used in tissue engineering or construction applications, respectively.A key factor motivating this work is the limited availability of experimental tools, particularly sensing platforms capable of enabling process monitoring and material synthesis, characterization, and screening in integrated online, low-volume, and high-throughput formats for polymeric waste. This dissertation expands the online sensing and high-throughput screening tools smart re-processing and -manufacturing of recycled plastics and polymer, with particular focus on solvent-based re-processing methods. In particular, this dissertation is driven by a novel platform sensing technology of the piezoelectric-excited milli-cantilever (PEMC), which exhibits a self-exciting and sensing design and dip-stick form factor that enables the monitoring and characterization of recycled polymers and plastics in on-line, low-volume, and high-throughput formats. By characterizing the dynamic and net change responses of PEMC sensors after 60 minutes of electrospun material deposition, this study established performance metrics to evaluate polymer solutions, thermoplastic coatings, and solvent-based polymer re-processing applications. Next, PEMC sensors were leveraged for screening of composition-property relations of polymer-reinforced concrete using a low-volume measurement format, extending the applications of PEMC sensors to characterization of composite structural materials with recycled polymers. Finally, leveraging the established dynamic range for solvent and composite based recycling, PEMC sensors were utilized in a low-volume, high-throughput format to screen green solvents and blend formulations for polymeric waste. This dissertation advances a sensing platform technology based on piezoelectric milli-cantilevers for the accelerated discovery and engineering of recycled materials, particularly in solvent and composite systems"]},{"key":"dc:description.abstractgeneral","label":"General Abstract","values":["As part of the global effort to reduce waste and save the environment, there is a growing interest in the intelligent and sustainable recycling of plastics. This has created new opportunities for improving plastic recycling by embracing innovative technologies that provide real-time monitoring and control of recycling activities. Nonetheless, most recycling systems have inadequate procedures to analyze the grade of recycled plastics at the processing phase. In addition, research and analysis on different configurations of materials to search out optimal configurations involves a tedious process. These have slowed down progress in improving the usefulness and efficiency of recycled plastics. The United States responded to these challenges by launching the Materials Genome Initiative (MGI). The MGI aims to accelerate the efficient discovery and development of new materials. While there has been significant progress in areas like electronic materials, advances in recycled material discovery and engineering, such as for uses in areas including healthcare and construction, has been relatively slow. The current thesis introduces a versatile sensor, known as a piezoelectric-excited milli-cantilever (PEMC), that allows for the analysis of recycled material mechanical properties. The dip-stick design allows for quick evaluation of small amounts of recycled plastic, thereby facilitating integration with processes and use in high-throughput screening formats. The sensor was applied to the characterization of polymer and plastic solutions and coatings as well as plastic-concrete composites with one aim of finding better and safer solvents for recycling plastics from electronic devices. The results of this research depict the potential of PEMC sensors to improve and expand our understanding of recycled plastics' minimal thresholds. Using this technology may drive improvements in recycling process and recycled material quality, and this can positively impact both industry stakeholders and the environment."]},{"key":"dc:description.degree","label":"Dc Description Degree","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]},{"key":"dc:format.medium","label":"Dc Format Medium","values":["ETD"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Smart Re-Manufacturing of Recycled Plastics and Polymers using Sensor-based and High-throughput Experimentation Formats"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.committeechair":["Johnson, Blake"],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["Kong, Zhenyu","Jia, Xiaoting","Goldstein, Aaron S."],"dc:contributor.department":["Graduate School"],"dc:creator":["Anderson, Lester"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2026-02-04T09:00:24Z"],"dc:date.available":["2026-02-04T09:00:24Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2026-02-03"],"dc:description.abstract":["The emergence of a circular economy associated with products derived from recycled plastics and polymers and the continued demand for creating sustainable polymer manufacturing systems has provided new opportunities and incentives for the quality-controlled re-processing and manufacturing of recycled materials, such as recycled plastics and polymer, such as using smart manufacturing principles. Likewise, there remains a need to identify environmentally benign (i.e., green) material formulations and processes for sustainable re-manufacturing based on smart manufacturing principles of sensing, automation, and data analytics. However, traditional approaches for process monitoring of plastic re-manufacturing operations are generally limited with respect to lack of online sensing technology for characterization of the reprocessed polymer material's quality, specifically composition and properties, and lack of rapid, efficient, and high-throughput experimental-based material screening and design are foundational challenges that limit industrial progress. Toward addressing these challenges, the United States started the Materials Genome Initiative aims to accelerate the pace and efficiency of discovering new materials, such as derived from recycled plastics and polymers, through the creation of new experimental tools and processes, such as for autonomous experimentation. While progress has been made in several material domains, including electronic and soft materials, relative less work has been done in the area of recycled plastics and polymers, such as for diverse materials, including electrospun or structural materials used in tissue engineering or construction applications, respectively.A key factor motivating this work is the limited availability of experimental tools, particularly sensing platforms capable of enabling process monitoring and material synthesis, characterization, and screening in integrated online, low-volume, and high-throughput formats for polymeric waste. This dissertation expands the online sensing and high-throughput screening tools smart re-processing and -manufacturing of recycled plastics and polymer, with particular focus on solvent-based re-processing methods. In particular, this dissertation is driven by a novel platform sensing technology of the piezoelectric-excited milli-cantilever (PEMC), which exhibits a self-exciting and sensing design and dip-stick form factor that enables the monitoring and characterization of recycled polymers and plastics in on-line, low-volume, and high-throughput formats. By characterizing the dynamic and net change responses of PEMC sensors after 60 minutes of electrospun material deposition, this study established performance metrics to evaluate polymer solutions, thermoplastic coatings, and solvent-based polymer re-processing applications. Next, PEMC sensors were leveraged for screening of composition-property relations of polymer-reinforced concrete using a low-volume measurement format, extending the applications of PEMC sensors to characterization of composite structural materials with recycled polymers. Finally, leveraging the established dynamic range for solvent and composite based recycling, PEMC sensors were utilized in a low-volume, high-throughput format to screen green solvents and blend formulations for polymeric waste. This dissertation advances a sensing platform technology based on piezoelectric milli-cantilevers for the accelerated discovery and engineering of recycled materials, particularly in solvent and composite systems"],"dc:description.abstractgeneral":["As part of the global effort to reduce waste and save the environment, there is a growing interest in the intelligent and sustainable recycling of plastics. This has created new opportunities for improving plastic recycling by embracing innovative technologies that provide real-time monitoring and control of recycling activities. Nonetheless, most recycling systems have inadequate procedures to analyze the grade of recycled plastics at the processing phase. In addition, research and analysis on different configurations of materials to search out optimal configurations involves a tedious process. These have slowed down progress in improving the usefulness and efficiency of recycled plastics. The United States responded to these challenges by launching the Materials Genome Initiative (MGI). The MGI aims to accelerate the efficient discovery and development of new materials. While there has been significant progress in areas like electronic materials, advances in recycled material discovery and engineering, such as for uses in areas including healthcare and construction, has been relatively slow. The current thesis introduces a versatile sensor, known as a piezoelectric-excited milli-cantilever (PEMC), that allows for the analysis of recycled material mechanical properties. The dip-stick design allows for quick evaluation of small amounts of recycled plastic, thereby facilitating integration with processes and use in high-throughput screening formats. The sensor was applied to the characterization of polymer and plastic solutions and coatings as well as plastic-concrete composites with one aim of finding better and safer solvents for recycling plastics from electronic devices. The results of this research depict the potential of PEMC sensors to improve and expand our understanding of recycled plastics' minimal thresholds. Using this technology may drive improvements in recycling process and recycled material quality, and this can positively impact both industry stakeholders and the environment."],"dc:description.degree":["Doctor of Philosophy"],"dc:format.medium":["ETD"],"dc:identifier.other":["vt_gsexam:45140"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/141130"],"dc:language.iso":["en"],"dc:publisher":["Virginia Tech"],"dc:rights":["In Copyright"],"dc:rights.uri":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"dc:subject":["sensing","high-throughput experimentation","Materials Genome Initiative","recycled materials","green solvents","sustainable manufacturing","re-manufacturing","re-processing","process monitoring","material design","circular economy"],"dc:title":["Smart Re-Manufacturing of Recycled Plastics and Polymers using Sensor-based and High-throughput Experimentation Formats"],"dc:type":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Macromolecular Science and Engineering"],"thesis:degree_level":["doctoral"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Philosophy"],"thesis:institution_name":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:07Z"}