By editing the polymers of discarded plastics, chemists have found a way to generate new macromolecules with more valuable properties than those of the starting material.
Upcycling may help remedy the roughly 450 million tons of plastic discarded worldwide annually, of which only 9% gets recycled; the rest is incinerated or winds up in landfills, oceans or elsewhere.
The ORNL researchers precisely edited commodity polymers that significantly contribute to plastic waste. In some experiments, the researchers worked with soft polybutadiene, which is common in rubber tires. In other experiments, they worked with tough acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, the stuff of plastic toys, computer keyboards, ventilation pipes, protective headgear, vehicle trim and molding, and kitchen appliances.
The molecular building blocks of the polymer backbone contain functional groups, or clusters of atoms that serve as reactive sites for modification. Notably, the double bonds between carbons increase the chances for chemical reactions that enable polymerization. A carbon ring opens at a double bond to create a polymer chain that grows as each functional polymer unit directly slips in, conserving the material.
Traditional recycling fails to capture the value in discarded plastics because it reuses polymers that become less valuable through degradation with each melt and reuse. By contrast, ORNL's innovative upcycling utilizes the existing building blocks to incorporate the mass and characteristics of the waste material and provide added functionality and value.
Next, the researchers are interested in changing the types of subunits in the polymer chain and rearranging them to see whether they can create high-performance thermoset materials. Examples are epoxy resins, vulcanized rubber, polyurethane and silicone. Once cured, thermoset materials cannot be remelted or reshaped because their molecular structure is cross-linked. That makes their recycling a challenge.
Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry Engineering And Construction Electronics Physics Nanotechnology Organic Chemistry
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