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Dr. Moritz Kuehnel of Swansea University, part of the team responsible for developing a process to convert unwanted plastics into hydrogen, which in turn could be used to run cars.University of Swansea
The discarded plastic could be used to power cars in the future through an innovative process developed by scientists at Swansea University. They managed to turn unwanted plastic into hydrogen, which in turn could be used to drive cars.
Dr. Moritz Kuehnel, from the University's Department of Chemistry, explained to the BBC how the light-absorbing material was added to the plastic before it was placed in an alkaline solution and then exposed to light of the sun, which creates hydrogen.
He stated that this process could be less expensive than recycling because any type of plastic can be used and it is not necessary to clean it first.
"There is a lot of plastic used every year – billions of tons – and only a fraction of it is recycled – we try to find a use for what is not recycled," he said. declared.
Most plastic bottles are PET [polyethylene terephthalate] that can be recycled but often end up being burned or thrown into a landfill.
Dr. Kuehnel said: "But even if you recycle it, it must be very pure – so, only the PET, nothing else mixes … and it must be clean, without fat, without oil.
"Potentially, you have to wash it, which is very expensive, and even if you do all that, the plastic you get is not always as good as virgin material."
He added, "The beauty of this process is that it is not very fussy, it can degrade all kinds of waste.
"Even if there is food or a little fat in a margarine tub, it does not stop the reaction, it makes it better.
"The process produces gaseous hydrogen – you can see bubbles coming out of the surface – you can use it, for example, to power a hydrogen car."
However, he warned that the deployment of the project at the industrial level could still take years.
Related article: The polymer additive could revolutionize the recycling of plastics
Dr. Kuehnel added that the work, funded by the Research Council for Physical Sciences and Engineering and an Austrian petrochemical company, also showed how plastic remains could be recycled to make new plastics.
Only one part of PET is used to produce hydrogen and carbon dioxide – the other part remains intact and stays in the solution.
He said, "We get hydrogen fuel and we get a chemical that we can use to make a new plastic.
"We do not manufacture a new full plastic, we only use half of the material to make a new plastic and the rest can be recycled – a bottle of clean, clear plastic water."
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