Introduction
PLFs: the next sustainability frontier Very few people outside of the chemical industries will have heard of polymers in liquid formulations – or PLFs – but almost everyone in the world interacts with them on a daily basis. Found in millions of consumer and industrial products, and comprising hundreds of types of polymers, PLFs are used in everything from treating the water we drink to formulating the soap we wash our hands with. Unfortunately, the way that they are currently made, used and disposed of is not sustainable. Every year around 36 million tonnes of these materials are made from fossil sources – enough to fill Wembley Stadium 32 times over. Finding ways to replace fossil feedstocks, reuse and recycle PLFs is not only a priority for a sustainable future, but it also represents a huge financial opportunity. It is estimated that the value of PLFs that are never recovered is about $125 billion a year. Despite the widespread use and importance of PLFs, the majority of polymer research, funding and collaboration focuses on plastics. In recent years researchers and policymakers have rallied around the challenge of plastic pollution, and we are starting to see some progress. We have an opportunity to act decisively to deliver a similar level of sustainability improvements for PLFs. A similarly focused approach is needed to understand and address the impacts of PLFs on the health of our planet.
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