Bottle caps and plastic bottles should be recycled separately

Many people cover their caps when they send plastic bottles for recycling. It is usually not appropriate to do this. This is not because plastics used to make plastic caps cannot be recycled - most types of plastics can be recycled. But because the plastics used to make plastic caps and the plastics used to make them are usually not of the same type, and if two types of plastics are mixed together, it means that one type of plastic contaminates another plastic, This reduces the value of its use, or it takes labor to separate the two.

Another reason for not collecting the caps is that the PE caps may jam the machine when the plastic bottles are processed in the recycling center. In addition, bottle caps may threaten the safety of recycling workers. Most of the recycled plastic bottles should be crushed and packed before being shipped away. If the lid of the plastic bottle is tightly closed and the bottle is not crushed, then when the temperature rises, it may explode due to gas expansion in the bottle and cause workers to be injured.

Therefore, it is actually a relatively responsible practice to remove and throw away the caps before recycling plastic bottles. Some recycling centers may also accept caps for recycling, but they should also open caps and bottles.