Vaporizing plastics recycles them into nothing but gas
Researchers at UC Berkeley have developed a cost-effective method for recycling polypropylene and polyethylene into useful gases, effectively addressing plastic waste management challenges and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
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Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley have developed a new method for recycling polypropylene and polyethylene, two of the most common and difficult-to-recycle plastics. The process, known as isomerizing ethenolysis, utilizes catalysts to break down the long carbon chains of these polyolefins into smaller molecules, specifically propylene and isobutylene, which are gases at room temperature. This method is significant because it can effectively recycle both types of plastics simultaneously, addressing a major challenge in plastic waste management. The researchers found that the process remains effective even when mixed with other plastics, although contaminants can reduce yield. The new approach is more economical than previous methods, which relied on expensive metals, and has shown promising results in scaling up. The ultimate goal is to create a practical recycling method that reduces reliance on fossil fuels for producing essential chemicals, thereby decreasing greenhouse gas emissions associated with plastic production. However, substantial infrastructure development will be necessary to implement this method on a larger scale.
- A new recycling method for polypropylene and polyethylene has been developed by UC Berkeley researchers.
- The process converts these plastics into useful gases, propylene and isobutylene, using catalysts.
- It can effectively recycle mixed plastics, although contaminants can lower yield.
- The method is more cost-effective than previous techniques that used expensive metals.
- Scaling up the process is essential for significant impact on plastic waste management.
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8 commentsThe current sense of a plastic waste crisis is that a certain fraction of plastic gets chucked outside and will find its way to the ocean where it will be mechanically broken down in harmful ‘microplastic’ and ‘nanoplastic’ particles. No form of recycling will work if people don’t use the bin.
If, in the other hand, people throw the plastic in the trash bin it will be buried and spend a long time (100-10,000 years?) underground and will at least somewhat decompose. Any environmental threat is kicked far into the future.
The trouble with chemical recycling is that it produces the kind of chemicals that come out of an oil refinery/petrochemical complex (which are used to make plastics) and those are all worth about 50 cents a pound.
Out of curiosity, how often are new plastics invented, and how often are those plastics difficult to recycle?
For example I'm finding that modern computer cables are sheathed in a much more durable (less brittle) form of plastic than those from 10+ years ago. Or is that just the addition of pthalates?
Edit: plasma gasification does still produce tar, as per [1], but much less than standard gasification. There isn't much review on the effects of applying plasma gasification to plastics.
1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S09560...
In one particular video they were shredding all kinds of waste plastic (again, not even a dust mask) and melting it to extrude into thin strings that were then cooled and chopped up yielding bags of source material for new products.
They were then taking these pellets and making "PVC water pipes" using a home-made looking propane powered extrusion machine. God only knows what kinds of plastic they were using but the pipes looked exactly like the ones you'd find at a Home Depot or similar store. Kudos to the ingenuity of the workers, but wow, I worry about the health implications not just for the workers inhaling the particles and fumes, but the end-users who are now drinking water through pipes made from who knows what plastics.
But the article doesn't address the biggest issues:
1) Do you need to separate types of plastics or clean them before using this process?
2) What are the challenges to scaling this? (They mentioned that this is an issue but didn't answer the question)
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