Valorization of Post‐Consumer Waste From Metallized Flexible Packaging and Industrial EPM Waste: Development of Sustainable Composites

This study focused on the development of sustainable composites through the valorization of post‐consumer metallized flexible packaging waste (PC‐MFP) and industrial ethylene propylene elastomer waste (EPMr). Composites containing different PC‐MFP/EPMr ratios (70/30, 50/50, and 30/70 wt%) were produced by calendering, grinding, extrusion, and injection molding, followed by thermal, mechanical, and morphological characterization. X‐ray fluorescence (XRF) identified aluminum (4.50%) and titanium (4.31%), while Raman spectroscopy confirmed the presence of titanium predominantly as rutile TiO 2 , a pigment commonly used in flexible packaging. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) showed that EPMr modified the crystallization behavior of the composites without substantially affecting polypropylene crystallinity. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) indicated degradation onset temperatures above 400°C for all formulations, with only modest differences in thermal stability. Increasing EPMr content reduced the modulus of elasticity from 296.59 to 7.19 MPa. Improved impact performance was observed only for the PC‐MFP70/EPMr30 formulation, which achieved 53.36 kJ/m 2 , whereas higher EPMr contents reduced impact strength. The PC‐MFP70/EPMr30 composite exhibited the most favorable balance between stiffness, ductility, and impact resistance, indicating potential for future non‐structural civil construction applications.