Is it ever possible to separate the chemical composition of plastics?

I am no chemist or anything like that, but I tend to worry all these environmental problems that just keeps on growing each day, each year. Anyway, I have watched an episode in History channel, about a certain girl who was able to capture carbon dioxide. I know plastics are different compared to this CO2 that's in the air mixed with other gasses. But do you think that mankind can ever invent something that can separate chemically bound matters?Is it ever possible to separate the chemical composition of plastics?Yes we can separate chemically bound materials and do so all the time.

Plastics however use cyanide as a building block and its because cyanide is so chemically reactive that its such a good Poison and also a good strong ingredient to use in manufacturing.

This causes the problem of how do we break down the plastic and reuse it when we are finished with the original product.

As suggested we can always burn it but that will chemically change the plastic and produce even worse products like dioxins , however it answers your question.

No doubt we can do other things but as cyanide is very strong we may need to use fluorine to over power the cyanide bonds and we then create another problem even worse than the plastic.

The solution is simple stop using plastic so much and start using an alternative that can easily be recycled or broken down by heat etc. However plastic is so good and versatile that to develop an equivalent alternative is a very very hard task and why no has managed to do so yet.

It ironic that we want plastics because they do not break down easily - yet when we finished with them we change our mind and want them to decompose quickly.

We need to only make things from plastics if they require a very long usage life and stop using them for packaging of foods etc like milk cartons when we could use paper or glass.

In my opinion the main problem is simply over population of man kind.The earth is only a certain size and can regenerate or cope with so much of mans interference however we are tipping the balance too far and every one is using so much energy , travel etc that we are generating too much waste (carbon) and at the same time cutting down too many trees to feed our energy demands that it has become unsustainable.

However it will not change as people every where want a large family the problem simply grows and grows.Is it ever possible to separate the chemical composition of plastics?To say never is something I would not do. I am sure that chemical processes can be designed to reverse what has already been created. However this is a material world. The cost would according to those that hold the power, be unacceptable. So instead we continue with the cheaper option, bury or burn the left over and create some more from oil.
I am sure that one day mankind will be able to imitate the action of plants, that is convert carbon dioxide into starch or cellulose and release oxygen, and use just sunlight for the energy required. Cellulose can be used as a fibre such as cotton, and also an artificial fibre, I think it is rayon.
When ???Is it ever possible to separate the chemical composition of plastics?Plastics that can be separated from each other by heat already exist and separating two chemically bound substances happens all the time.



By burning plastic, you also separate the original chemical bond into Carbon, Carbonmonooxide, Carbon-dioxide, Water and all the other different specific chemicals for the type of plastic!Is it ever possible to separate the chemical composition of plastics?
The short answer to your question: no. Plastics are long carbon polymers that would be generally energy-inefficient to melt down, break up, and react with other substances to produce the desired products.

The solution to the problems with CO2 actually has to do more with biology than chemistry. The easiest way to reduce CO2 levels on this planet begins with us: the less we consume and the more we preserve, the lower those levels will be in the future. Some scientists are even promoting iron-fertilization experiments in the ocean to promote growth of organisms that respirate using CO2.

Edit: I guess I didn't quite answer the question. Yes, it is possible to melt down plastics to form other compounds. I was more concerned with the fact that it's not particularly efficient, which I think is a fact that most nature or science channels would be talking about.