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Converting Plastic to Hydrogen Fuel
By Kerry TaylorSmith, B.Sc. (Hons) Oct 22 2018
ImageCredit:Shutterstock/RichCarey
Plastic waste is a massive problem, there is no doubt about that, but ever since
Blue Planet 2 aired on the BBC last year, attention has been firmly focused on what
can be done to reduce the volume of singleuse items and other plastic waste that
is slowly amassing across the planet.
Fundamental Uses and Disadvantages of Plastics
Despite receiving much criticism, it would be difficult to live in a completely plasticfree
world. Plastics have many beneficial properties and are easy to massproduce; they are
used in singleuse drinks bottles, food storage containers, children’s toys and millions of
other everyday items we take for granted. However, they are also a massive problem:
knowing how to manage, dispose of and recycle them is becoming progressively more
challenging.
Furthermore, they have a hugely negative effect on the environment. It is predicted that
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Converting Plastic to Hydrogen Fuel
Furthermore, they have a hugely negative effect on the environment. It is predicted that
more than 300 million tonnes of plastic are produced globally every year, with a mere
10% of that being recycled the rest makes its way into landfill, or is found on the streets
or in the ocean. It’s clear that recycling isn’t enough, we need to think of novel ways to
reduce our plastic consumption, and where possible reuse and recycle it.
Converting Plastics into Useful Fuel
A team of scientists from Swansea University and the University of Cambridge have been
thinking outside the box and have developed a means of converting plastic to hydrogen
fuel that could be employed to power cars in the future.
A lot of energy goes into making plastic, and when this plastic is discarded, the energy is
lost. The researchers’ simple, lowenergy sunlight driven process – which operates under
ambient temperature and pressure could recover some of this missing energy. The
method – known as photoreforming – uses semiconductor nanoparticles in the form of
cadmium sulfide quantum dots as a photocatalyst to degrade the plastic.
Method
Firstly, the plastic is cut into small pieces and its surface scrubbed to roughen it up.
Quantum dots are added to the plastic which is then immersed in an alkaline solution.
Irradiation with sunlight or a solar simulator lamp which mimics sunlight – is used to
drive two simultaneous chemical reactions. The first sees hydrogen produced from the
water in the alkaline solution while in the second, plastic polymers are oxidized to small
organic molecules which can be recycled.
“ The process produces hydrogen gas. You can see bubbles coming off the
surface. You can use it, for example, to fuel a hydrogen car.
Moritz Kuehnel, Department of Chemistry, Swansea University
Results
The method has so far been tested on three common polymers – polylactic acid,
polyethylene terphthalate and polyurethane – and results have been comparable to those
achieved with stateoftheart hydrogen evolution photocatalyst systems employing
expensive sacrificial agents. The team have demonstrated proofofconcept by
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Converting Plastic to Hydrogen Fuel
expensive sacrificial agents. The team have demonstrated proofofconcept by
converting a PET bottle into hydrogen in a firstofitskind, visible lightdriven, noblemetal
free photoreforming process.
Photoreforming in this way represents a cheaper alternative to recycling as the plastic
doesn’t have to be pure and clean – in other words not contaminated with food or oils,
which can in fact, improve the reaction. “The beauty of this process is that it’s not very
picky. It can degrade all sorts of waste,” Kuehnel told the BBC. "Even if there is food or a
bit of grease from a margarine tub, it doesn't stop the reaction, it makes it better.”
Conclusion
The process now needs to be scaled up to an industrial level – which make take several
years – but it’s clear that the process has a great environmental and economic value in
the real world. It has substantial potential in converting massive amounts of plastic waste
which might otherwise end up in landfill into valuable chemicals and fuel.
References and Further Reading
Plastic waste could fuel cars of the future thanks to scientific breakthrough
Plastic waste bid to fuel hydrogen cars at Swansea University
Sunlight converts plastic waste to fuel
Plastic waste as a feedstock for solardriven H2 generation
Plastic waste destroying oceans could be used to fuel cars
Disclaimer: The views expressed here are those of the author expressed in their
private capacity and do not necessarily represent the views of AZoM.com Limited T/A
AZoNetwork the owner and operator of this website. This disclaimer forms part of the
Terms and conditions of use of this website.
Written by
Kerry TaylorSmith
Kerry has been a freelance writer, editor, and proofreader since 2016, specializing in science
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and healthrelated subjects. She has a degree in Natural Sciences at the University of Bath
and is based in the UK.
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