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Hydrocracking Our Way to Recycling Plastic Waste
2021-4-28
Polyolefins account for 60 to 70% of all plastics made today.
SEATTLE (Waste Advantage): In the United States, less than 9% of plastic waste is recycled. Instead, more than 75% of plastics waste ends up in landfills and up to 16% is burned, a process that releases toxic gases into the atmosphere. Researchers from the University of Delaware’s Center for Plastics Innovation (CPI) have developed a direct method to convert single-use plastic waste — plastic bags, yogurt containers, plastic bottles and bottle caps, packaging and more — to ready-to-use molecules for jet fuels, diesel and lubricants. The work, reported in a paper in Science Advanceson Wednesday, April 21, focuses on using a novel catalyst and unique process to quickly break down these hardest-to-recycle plastics, known as polyolefins. Polyolefins account for 60 to 70% of all plastics made today.
The UD-developed process requires approximately 50% less energy than other technologies, and it doesn’t involve adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, an emissions savings over other commonly used techniques. It can be done in just a couple hours at low temperature, around 250 degrees Celsius. This is slightly higher than the 450-degree Fahrenheit oven temperature you might use to roast vegetables or bake a puff pastry at home.
Importantly, the UD team’s method can treat a variety of plastics, even when they are mixed together, a plus considering the way recyclables are managed. “Chemical conversion is the most versatile and robust approach to combat plastics waste,” said Dion Vlachos, the project principal investigator and the Unidel Dan Rich Chair in Energy Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at UD.
SEATTLE (Waste Advantage): In the United States, less than 9% of plastic waste is recycled. Instead, more than 75% of plastics waste ends up in landfills and up to 16% is burned, a process that releases toxic gases into the atmosphere. Researchers from the University of Delaware’s Center for Plastics Innovation (CPI) have developed a direct method to convert single-use plastic waste — plastic bags, yogurt containers, plastic bottles and bottle caps, packaging and more — to ready-to-use molecules for jet fuels, diesel and lubricants. The work, reported in a paper in Science Advanceson Wednesday, April 21, focuses on using a novel catalyst and unique process to quickly break down these hardest-to-recycle plastics, known as polyolefins. Polyolefins account for 60 to 70% of all plastics made today.
The UD-developed process requires approximately 50% less energy than other technologies, and it doesn’t involve adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, an emissions savings over other commonly used techniques. It can be done in just a couple hours at low temperature, around 250 degrees Celsius. This is slightly higher than the 450-degree Fahrenheit oven temperature you might use to roast vegetables or bake a puff pastry at home.
Importantly, the UD team’s method can treat a variety of plastics, even when they are mixed together, a plus considering the way recyclables are managed. “Chemical conversion is the most versatile and robust approach to combat plastics waste,” said Dion Vlachos, the project principal investigator and the Unidel Dan Rich Chair in Energy Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at UD.
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