Paper

Paper is collected from different sources and may be separated into categories like newsprint, office paper, mixed paper, and cardboard. The material is shipped to a mill where it's brought to the pulper. Here warm water and chemicals break the paper into pulp. This pulp is called slurry. Since pulp starts out as 99 percent water and 1 percent fiber, slurry looks like a thick milkshake. Next, ink is removed, and pulp is bleached and mixed with traditional pulp from trees. The pulp is now ready to be made into various types of paper. The mixed pulp is pumped between two moving screens. The water is removed from the top and bottom, and the fibers form a mat. The mat is sent through drying rollers to remove more moisture. It's then ironed for smoothness, and the paper is packed in cartons or rolls.

Glass

Glass containers are collected and sorted into clear, green and brown glass. Recycling centers crush the color-separated glass containers into small pieces called cullet. The cullet is loaded onto trucks or railroad cars. Then it’s shipped to a processing company where it’s cleaned and made ready to be sold to a glass factory. At the glass factory, the cullet is mixed with sand and other substances and heated. The molten glass is then molded into new bottles and jars.

Recycled glass is just as strong as glass made from sand or virgin resources. Glass never wears out, and glass containers can be recycled forever without loss of quality. Glass recycling works so well that most bottles and jars contain at least 30 percent recycled glass. Recycling glass saves more than a quarter of the energy used to make glass from raw materials.

Plastic

Plastics are sorted by number 1 through 7, or by product such as soft-drink containers and milk jugs. This sorting increases the value, and materials may be compacted or baled to reduce shipping costs. Sorted plastics are chopped, washed, and converted into flakes or pellets. The flakes or pellets are heated and formed into new products. Plastic containers are most likely formed into other products such as sleeping bags, carpets, clothing, and containers for non-eatable storage.

Cans

Cans are separated into steel or aluminum cans. (Tin cans are actually made of steel with a small amount of tin covering the container.) The cans are shredded so they take up less space when they go to the smelter. Aluminum is a good example of how recycling can reduce pollution. Making new cans from recycled aluminum cuts air pollution and cuts energy requirements by 95 percent.