Technique for Converting Post-Consumer Mixed Plastics Into High-Value Products Found

Researchers have developed a process for turning the heterogeneous post-consumer plastic waste that washes up on beaches into a variety of useful goods.

Making medications from plastic waste

(Photo : Antoine GIRET/Unsplash)

Researchers at the USC have developed a technique to efficiently convert post-consumer mixed plastics into a range of unique and valuable secondary products as a result of this issue, as per ScienceDaily.

This two-stage procedure, which was just detailed in Angewandte Chemie, has a lot ofintriguing potential uses in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, raw materials, and other goods.

Polyethylene, a material frequently found in packaging, automobile parts, and plastic shopping bags, has significantly improved people's quality of life and health.

The qualities that make plastics valuable, such as their sterility and durability, also prohibit recycling and environmentally beneficial decomposition.

Chemical recycling might make polyethylene recycling and remanufacture more affordable than they currently are.

Plastic milk cartons, carryout containers, grocery bags, and other home items were among the waste that was generated.

After using chemical catalysts and compressed oxygen to break down the samples, the researchers produced chemical groups known as diacids, in this case asperbenzaldehyde, citreoviridin, and mutilin.

The research team exposed the diacids to modified Aspergillus niduluns strains, a flexible, simple-to-engineer fungus frequently used in drug development.

The fungus produced considerable amounts of antibiotics, cholesterol-lowering statins, immunosuppressants, and antifungals within a week of being fed diacids as a carbon source.

The researchers recruited numerous student and neighborhood groups to gather raw plastic garbage from Catalina Harbor as samples for this innovative approach.

Also Read: Scientist Discovers How to Breakdown Plastics and Turn Them to Constituent Parts and Valuable Chemicals

Natural Polymers

Natural polymers have been extensively used in many medicinal applications, including pharmaceuticals, scaffolds for tissue regeneration, drug delivery systems, and imaging agents, as per ScienceDirect.

They have been utilized in wound care as templates for regeneration as well as bandages for either acute or chronic wounds.

There are numerous natural sources of polymers, including plants, animals, and microorganisms.

Natural polymer-based scaffolds are desirable for skin repair and regeneration due to their homology to the extracellular matrix, mechanical tunability, high biocompatibility, and high-water holding capacity.

Importance of Chemical Recycling

Utilizing heat, chemical processes, or both, chemical recycling methods convert spent polymers into the raw ingredients needed to make new plastic, fuel, or other chemicals, as per GAO.

Chemical recycling might lessen the quantity of plastic that is disposed of in landfills, potentially lowering the amount of dangerous chemicals released into the environment.

Additionally, chemical recycling can generate premium raw materials, reducing the need for fossil fuels and other natural resources.

Chemical recycling techniques are in use, such as those that convert waste plastic into fuel or even other chemicals.

The use of chemical solvents to remove additives as well as other components from waste plastic, for example, is one of the methods still under development.

Furthermore, recent improvements in sorting technology (which may be applied to both chemical and mechanical recycling) may boost recycling effectiveness and result in a rise in the recycling of plastic.

Chemical recycling has a few problems, including those related to processes and technology, high startup and ongoing costs, and a lack of incentives for recycling innovation and investment.

Additionally, due in part to high transportation costs and a lack of adequate recycling infrastructure, new plastics made from fossil fuels are often less expensive to generate than recycled plastics. This reduces the marketability of recycled plastics.