Could chemical recycling be done in a gentler way?
Sustainable Plastics reports new research from the U.S. Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory that describes a chemical recycling process that dramatically reduces energy use.
American scientists develop a gentler chemical recycling process, greatly reducing energy use
The researchers combined the cracking step with a "second reaction step" for immediate conversion to a gasoline-like liquid fuel with no unnecessary by-products. The second reaction step uses an alkylation catalyst, the same one the oil industry currently uses to boost gasoline octane.
The process requires only 158 degrees Fahrenheit, which is lower than the temperature set for baking chocolate chip cookies.
