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Description
The Covid-19 pandemic has burdened Europe and the world with the accumulation of huge amounts of waste in the field of disposable medical devices, including rapid antigen (LFIA) tests, which provide fast, selective and reliable diagnosis of infected people or viral carriers in various environments. The goal is to successfully recycle rapid antigenic LFIA tests so that the developed recyclables will be useful for the preparation of new products. The reduction in the number of waste rapid antigen LFIA tests for incineration and the consequent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions will be addressed by recycling them for each component separately (nanogold, plastics) and by using recyclables as a secondary source in further processing/use. To address this challenge, the following key activities are foreseen: (1) collection and sterilization of rapid tests, (2) design, installation and start-up of the separator, (3) plastic recycling (4) refining of nanogold (or Au nanoparticles), all activities will be supported by 5) characterization. In the final phase of the project, the activities for marketable use of refined nanogold will be carried out in Zlatarna Celje d.o.o. and for recycled plastics in Plastika Skaza d.o.o.. New products that will be designed using secondary materials will thus enter the material circulation scheme while maintaining added value for as long as possible. This will provide the conditions for reducing the waste generation rate towards zero.