2025-07-23 イェール大学
With a carbon column reactor made of three sections of decreasing pore size, Yale researchers have designed a device that converts plastic waste into useable materials.
＜関連情報＞
- https://engineering.yale.edu/news-and-events/news/device-convert-plastic-waste-fuel
- https://www.nature.com/articles/s44286-025-00248-0
孔構造調整型熱分解による選択的電気化ポリエチレンのアップサイクル Selective electrified polyethylene upcycling by pore-modulated pyrolysis
Ji Yang,Qi Dong,Chunyan Zhang,Wentao Zhang,Joel Miscall,Alexandra H. Brozena,Jiansong Chen,Ning Liu,Tangyuan Li,Fangyuan Liu,Claudemi A. Nascimento,Beatriz Dantas,Bohong Zhang,Farhan Mumtaz,Zixiao Liu,Shufeng Liu,Yiheng Du,Ziyu Wang,Zhiqiang Pang,Dongxia Liu,Jie Huang,Fernando V. Lima,Xuejun Pan,Yiguang Ju,… Liangbing Hu
Nature Chemical Engineering Published22 July 2025
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1038/s44286-025-00248-0
Abstract
Plastic waste is a growing problem, accumulating in landfills and the environment. Pyrolysis is a promising and industrially relevant approach for transforming plastic waste into value-added chemicals. However, the selectivity and yield of traditional plastic pyrolysis are poor, with products featuring broad molar mass distributions. Here we report a highly selective, energy-efficient and catalyst-free pyrolysis method that can upcycle plastic into value-added chemicals via pore-modulated pyrolysis. Using a Joule-heated carbon column, we demonstrate the pivotal role of the reactor’s graded porous structure in decreasing the polydispersity of the reaction intermediates, enabling high product selectivity and yield. The decreasing pore size of the reactor modulates the mass transport in an apparent gating effect—preventing high-molar-mass species from exiting the reactor before sufficient pyrolysis has occurred. Using polyethylene as a model reactant, we demonstrate a high yield of 65.9 ± 5.2% and up to 80.8% selectivity toward value-added aviation fuel precursor (C8–C18 hydrocarbons) without the use of any catalysts.
