The plastic crisis is one of the worst human-made threats to the planet. As scientists scramble to find permanent solutions for the ongoing problem, a team of researchers from the Osaka City University have developed a novel catalyst that turns plastic into fuel or wax.
Why are Plastics a Problem?
Co-author and associate professor at the Research Center for Artificial Photosynthesis in Osaka University Masazumi Tamura says, "Plastics are essential materials for our life because they bring safety and hygiene."
According to an article by National Geographic, plastics made out of fossil fuels have been around for more than a century. With the development and production drastically increasing after the Second World War.
Plastics are responsible for revolutionary life-saving medical devices; they have in part helped hasten space exploration, lightened cars, and have saved lives with incubators, drinking water equipment, and helmets. In truth, the convenience, hygiene, and necessity of plastics have become the root of the problem.
Today 40% of annual plastic production is due to single-use plastics.
The pressing environmental issue due to plastic products' rapid disposal has overwhelmed the world's ability to dispose of the byproducts properly.
When plastics are exposed to wave action, wind, and sunlight, they break down into microplastics. These tiny microplastics have spread over various water columns and can even be found in Mount Everest and the Mariana Trench.
What Can a Novel Catalyst Do?
"The growth of global plastic production and rapid penetration of plastics into our society has brought about mismanagement issues of waste plastics causing critical environmental and biological issues," Says Masazami Tamura.
Because of this, researchers have turned their eyes to the most common plastic produced -- Polyolefinic plastics. The material is responsible for conventional catalyst unable to cause molecular change.
Currently, recycling efforts require 573 Kelvin up to 1,173 Kelvin, which uses abundant energy and fossil fuel.
In the study "Applied Catalysis B: Environmental," published, the researchers searched for a heterogeneous catalyst that could react with the plastics at a much lower temperature.
By combining ruthenium- metal from the platinum family-- with cerium dioxide-- a material used for polishing glass--, researchers created novel catalysts that react with plastic at 473 Kelvin.
According to co-author Tamura and Tomishige, ruthenium-based catalysts have not been reported as a direct option for recycling polyolefinic plastics. The findings show that the novel metal-supported catalyst has had higher activity than those currently used.
The team processed plastic waste with the catalyst producing an astonishing 92% yield of vital materials, including a 15% yield of wax and a 77% yield of liquid fuel.
Tamura and Tomishige added, "This catalyst system is expected to contribute to the suppression of plastic wastes and the utilization of plastic as raw materials for the production of chemicals.
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