Researchers from the Shanghai Institute for Organic Chemistry, in cooperation with the University of California at Irvine, have developed an approach to recycle and reclaim polyethylene (PE) and turn it into liquid fuel and waxes.

Process turns PE into fuel. Image credit: Huang Zheng With more than 100 million metric tons of PE used worldwide, this resource has been difficult to reclaim because pyrolysis processes generally require temperatures greater than 400° C.

To break down the bonds of PE, the team, led by Zheng Huang at SOIC and Zhibin Guan of UIC, used alkanes (specific types of hydrocarbon molecules) to separate and scramble the polymer’s molecules for use in other compounds.

The team was able to degrade the material more efficiently through a process known as cross-alkane metathesis. The method eliminates the need for caustic chemicals, or radicals, to break down the bonds of the material. The process can be used for bottles, bags and other consumer products that are created with PE.

The team is working to increase the efficiency of the process by boosting the catalyst activity and lifetime, as well as by decreasing cost. They also hope to develop additional catalytic processes to recycle even more types of plastic trash.