Conversion of Polyethylene Waste into Gaseous Hydrocarbons via Integrated Tandem Chemical-Photo/Electrocatalytic Processes.

ABSTRACT: The chemical inertness of polyethylene makes chemical recycling challenging and motivates the development of new catalytic innovations to mitigate polymer waste. Current chemical recycling methods yield a complex mixture of liquid products, which is challenging to utilize in subsequent processes. Here, we present an oxidative depolymerization step utilizing diluted nitric acid to convert polyethylene into organic acids (40% organic acid yield), which can be coupled to a photo- or electrocatalytic decarboxylation reaction to produce hydrocarbons (individual hydrocarbon yields of 3 and 20%, respectively) with H₂ and CO₂ as gaseous byproducts. The integrated tandem process allows for the direct conversion of polyethylene into gaseous hydrocarbon products with an overall

SUBMITTER: Pichler CM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8353629 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature