94% plastic recycled in 4 hours: Scientists develop new method powered by air moisture
This new, more sustainable technique offers a promising path towards a circular economy for plastics.
In what could be a fix to the world’s plastic problem, researchers have developed a simple new method of harnessing moisture from air to breaking down the waste.
The process begins with an inexpensive catalyst that breaks down the bonds in polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the most widely used plastic in the polyester family. Once broken, the material is simply exposed to ambient air to transfer PET into monomers—the essential building blocks of plastics.
Researchers believe these monomers could then be recycled or upcycled into more valuable materials.