Do you think this is possible in the near future?

Question

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Answer 1

Not only it is possible, it is already happening. A test plasma waste converter was built in Japan some time ago, and now there is a pilot plasma waste converter plant underway somewhere in Florida. The principle is very simple---use plasma to reduce all waste into its raw elemental components, which are then separated and sold as mineral commodities. We already know that metals such as aluminum can be recycled indefinitely. We can do the same for the rest of the elements, which makes this a truly environmentally clean waste-free process. What's the catch? Energy, as always. It takes enormous energy to tear apart the waste product into its elements. However, the pilot projects reclaim some of that needed energy from chemical combustion of some of the waste mass prior to the plasma "rendering" stage, so it isn't as wasteful of energy as it first seems.

As for consumers washing and separating their trash, recycling as it stands today is almost a failure, with most cities being forced to spent part of their budgets to subsidize their recycling programs, and the bulk of carefully recycled waste end up in landfills anyway. Even after more than 15 years of trying, most of the recycled waste stream have yet to find a market. The few bright spots in recycling programs are those very things that can be recycled indefinitely, such as metals and glasses. Most of other typically recycled waste such as plastics and papers cannot be. And there is in fact an energy and environmental cost to recycling programs, it isn't quite as "green" as many people want to believe.

Answer 2

"Near future" probably not like you drew it, certainly as scythian said it could be done to some extent, but your drawing showed a closed loop. It is far easier to make plastics from molecules that are already fairly complex than from plain carbon and hydrogen. Though I suppose if you include biological processes that use CO2 and water from decomposition process, then, one could say that in a way is is happening already when organic materials are incinerated or composted. But for recycling metals it might be used when the natural supplies become scarce enough, how "near future" that will be I don't know.

You might read the "Diamond age" by Neal Stephenson sometime, he had sort of the same idea, but instead of central production plants every one had their own replicator/disassembler connected to a public raw material pipeline.
Of course StarTrek Next Generation had their replicators too, but I never saw them recycle anything.

Answer 3

Not really, I still see a lot of problems to be worked out. Remember that chemical reactions a lot of times do not go to 100% completion and they are not 100% efficient all the time so you will end up with a lot of energy wasted for a smaller effect. That proposal really needs to be thought about thoroughly and analyzed before anyone can say it is practical.

Right now it is more practical and easier and more energy efficient to have people seperate out their recyclebles and make less waste.

Answer 4

hell no

anything that involves the consumer doing something isn't gonna happen because most consumers are dumbasses now.

Answer 5

no, you're an idiot.