US scientists develop method to turn plastic into soap
Date: 2023-08-13 Author: Кирило Загоруйко Categories: TECHNOLOGY
The study was published in the journal Science, Ukrinform reports with reference to The Guardian.
Guoliang Liu, a professor of chemistry at Virginia Tech University, said he got the idea while sitting by the fire at Christmas.
“When firewood burns, it emits smoke made up of smaller wood particles. I was wondering if burning plastic would work in the same way,” the scientist said.
Liu and his colleagues have built a furnace-like reactor that can be used to safely burn plastic. The temperature at the bottom of the reactor is high enough to break the polymer chains, while the top of the reactor is cooled down to a temperature that prevents their excessive breakdown.
The scientists collected the remains after the incineration and found that the product they created was short-chain polyethylene, a type of wax. They then turned the wax into soap.
“This is the world's first plastic soap. The color is a bit strange, but it works,” Liu said.
The method, developed by scientists, works on polyethylene and polypropylene, the two most common types of plastic. In total, both account for about half of all plastic waste: almost 200 million tons annually. More than 80 percent of plastic waste ends up in landfills, while less than 10% is recycled.
One advantage of Liu's method is that it works on plastic that has reached the end of its useful life and cannot be recycled in the usual way.
The method has also been designed to be adaptable for industrial use.
Professor Liu, however, notes that the best way to avoid plastic pollution is to minimize its use.
