A research paper co-authored by Kim Hye-min and Jeong Won-young, master’s students in the Department of Chemistry at Kookmin University (President Jeong Seung Ryul), has been published in the international SCI journal *Spectrochimica Acta Part A: Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy*. Kim Hye-min served as a co-first author and Jeong Won-young as a co-author, with Professor Kim Hyung Min  supervising the research. The journal ranks in the top 12.8% according to the JCR.
 
The research team developed an ultra-high-speed band-selective infrared imaging technology that measures only six key short-wave infrared wavelengths indicative of a plastic’s chemical properties. Based on chemical fingerprints, this technology can analyze multiple types of waste plastic flake feedstock within 2 seconds and distinguish seven types of plastics and foreign materials with high accuracy through deep learning-based object recognition.
 
This study is significant in that it presents a practical spectroscopic and imaging analysis technology that can contribute to the high-purity sorting of waste plastics and the improvement of efficiency in resource recycling processes. By enabling the rapid analysis and sorting of waste plastic feedstock, it holds promise for enhancing the efficiency of future resource recycling processes.
 
Dr. Jang Jin-il from the laboratory of Professor Kim Hyung Min in the Department of Chemistry at Kookmin University and researcher Shim Woo-seok from Lotte Chemical’s Basic Chemistry R&D Division also participated in the research.

△ Photo: (From left) Student Kim Hye-min, Student Jeong Won-young, Dr. Jang Jin-il