Microplastics, plastics smaller than 5 millimeters, are littered around the world, contributing to global warming, disrupting food chains and harming ecosystems with toxic chemicals.

That’s why Dr. Manish Shetty, assistant professor of chemical engineering at Texas A&M University, is working to break down plastics before they enter the environment.

Creating sustainable chemicals and developing better waste management will contribute to better sustainability.

This research is part of discovering how to make green hydrogen available for waste management using catalysts.

Transforming plastic into green hydrogen

Shetty’s research uses small amounts of solvents that act as hydrogen sources to break down a specific class of plastics called condensation polymers, including polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles, packaging, textiles and 3D printing.

“What we have done in this research is to break down condensation polymers into aromatic compounds that can be used as fuels,” Shetty said.

“We use organic compounds called liquid organic hydrogen carriers to store hydrogen and use that hydrogen to break down the polymers.”

Shetty and his team designed catalysts to harness the hydrogen stored after cracking these condensation polymers, as outlined in Shetty’s recent work published in Angewandte Chemie International Edition.

The research shows how catalyst surfaces use hydrogen left over from these organic carriers to convert PET into p-xylene, a molecule that can be used for fuels or chemicals.

Waste management solution

Shetty said his research provides a solution to waste management and is crucial to the sustainability of the chemical industry.

“We have developed a solution for sustainability and waste management on these catalysts,” said Shetty.

“These organic molecules transport this hydrogen from where it’s generated to where it’s used for waste management, especially in an urban environment where we collect a lot of this waste.”

According to the paper, the research approach uses methanol to break down PET into smaller fragments and a source of H2 to form p-xylene from PET, a potential chemical or fuel.

Shetty believes that applying this research could shift our economy away from fossil fuels.

“One of the things that could happen is that as hydrogen becomes more available, especially for green hydrogen, which is through the electrolysis of water, we need hydrogen carriers as a transport vector,” Shetty said.

“One such use would be waste management and recovery.”

Waste to hydrogen

Researchers around the world have already developed ways to turn waste into green hydrogen.

Hyundai recent began testing domestic fuel production using biogas from food waste.

The move is said to be part of Hyundai’s long-term vision to develop a sustainable gas-based energy future.

Hyundai also disclosed its organic and plastic waste in H2 turning facilities. Together, these plants will produce more than 30,000 tons of hydrogen annually, making them the world’s largest facility in their field.

Researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) have developed a procedure to produce hydrogen gas from water using only solar energy and agriculture. wastesuch as manure or husks.

According to the team, by reducing the energy needed to extract hydrogen from water by 600 percent, the technique opens up new possibilities for creating green and sustainable chemicals.