Re-Use of Polycarbonate from Compact Discs to Enhance the Thermal Stability of Polylactic Acid Blends

Polymers, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 17(5), P. 606 - 606

Published: Feb. 24, 2025

This study investigates enhancing polylactic acid (PLA) by incorporating recycled polycarbonate (r-PC) to address PLA's inherent brittleness and limited thermal stability. Blends with varying PLA/r-PC ratios (100:0 0:100) were prepared using an internal mixer, r-PC sourced from discarded compact discs. The thermogravimetric analysis (-A) demonstrated significant improvements in the degradation onset temperature (T5 wt%) increased approximately 315 °C for pure PLA about 400 blends, a maximum decomposition (Tmax) of 520 observed r-PC. char residue also markedly, 1.35% 24.42% r-PC, indicating enhanced resistance. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) revealed considerable reduction crystallinity, declining 68.17% 10.32% 10PLA90r-PC blend, indicative disruption crystalline structure. X-ray diffraction (XRD) supported these findings, showing transition predominantly amorphous structure at higher contents. Tensile testing highlighted mechanical achieved through blending. While exhibited brittle failure, 30PLA70r-PC blend displayed plastic deformation, signifying improved toughness. stress-strain that peak toughness 8725 kJ/m3, nearly ten times than 924 kJ/m3 recorded PLA. However, excessive content introduced brittleness, diminishing dynamic (DMTA) broadening glass range, Tg shifting 61 141 r-PC-dominant reflecting phase interactions between two polymers. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) morphological changes; high contents, separation voids observed, leading reduced performance. These results highlight synergistic potential blending biodegradability r-PC's superior properties.

Language: Английский

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Flexible Perovskite Solar Cells on Polycarbonate Film Substrates

Advanced Energy Materials, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 14(45)

Published: Sept. 5, 2024

Abstract The market for polycarbonate (PC), a versatile material, is growing rapidly. Despite its widespread use in many applications, poor chemical resistance and roughness have hindered adoption as substrate solar cell technologies. Here, the first‐ever perovskite (PSC) demonstrated on PC films. A solution‐processed planarizing layer developed using commercial ambient‐curable refractory resin through blade coating which decreased film from 1.46 µm to 23 nm, lowered water vapor transmission rates (WVTR) by half, significantly improved solvent enabling deposition of precursor inks. PSCs are fabricated planarized substrate, with customized ITO electrode an average visible transparency 78%, sheet 25 Ω/sq, safe bending radius 20 mm. power conversion efficiency (PCE) reached 13.0%. unencapsulated retained 80% initial PCE after 1776 h upon ISOS‐D‐1 shelf‐life tests. These results open new pathways integrating cells products made materials, such ID cards, smart windows, skylights, buildings, product packaging, well introducing solution planarization barrier that can be used other types optoelectronic devices (LEDs, transistors, etc.) substrates.

Language: Английский

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Toward a Circular Economy of Heteroatom Containing Plastics: A Focus on Heterogeneous Catalysis in Recycling

Langmuir, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: March 3, 2025

Plastics play a vital role in modern society, but their accumulation landfills and the environment presents significant risks to ecosystems human health. In addition, discarding of plastic waste constitutes loss valuable material. While usual mechanical recycling method often results reduced material quality, chemical offers exciting opportunities valorize into compounds interest. Its versatility leans on broad horizon reactions applicable, such as hydrogenolysis, hydrolysis, alcoholysis, or aminolysis. The development heterogeneous supported organocatalysts has enormous potential enhance economic industrial viability these technologies, reducing cost process mitigating its global environmental impact. This review summarizes challenges chemically heteroatom-containing plastics through catalysis, covering widely used polyesters (notably PET PLA), BPA-polycarbonate (BPA-PC), polyurethane (PU), polyamide (PA), polyether. It examines limitations various solid catalysts, including clays, zeolites, metal–organic frameworks well immobilized enzymes (heterogeneous biocatalysts), for that facilitate recovery high-value products. By reintroducing products economy precursors, this approach supports more sustainable lifecycle plastics, aligning with principles circular economy.

Language: Английский

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Filling the Gaps: Tracing 12 Types of Non-commodity Plastics in China’s Plastic Socioeconomic Metabolism

Environmental Science & Technology, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: March 10, 2025

Recent plastic flow research has largely focused on commodity plastics (PE, PP, PVC, PS, ABS), yet a sizable share of other polymer types remains understudied. These non-commodity suffer from inconsistent definitions, complex classifications, and data gaps, which hinder accurate assessment their production, use, end-of-life management. This study develops dynamic material analysis to investigate 12 key "non-commodity" in China─including PET, PU, seven engineering plastics, three thermosetting plastics─and addresses these knowledge gaps. Our results show that 2022, China produces approximately 85 million tonnes polymers, volume comparable with 35% used products the remainder non-plastic applications (e.g., fibers, rubber). PET is predominantly employed short-lifespan packaging, whereas find use longer-lifespan applications, underscoring need for targeted recycling strategies─particularly chemical PU thermoset products. Revisiting scope "plastics" using scientific criteria can help mitigate definitional ambiguities guide more effective policymaking. By improving availability tracking this underexplored category, our lays groundwork assessments interventions reduce pollution.

Language: Английский

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Efficient and Selective Catalytic Oxidation of Ethylbenzene over Co-MOF Synthesized from Waste PET

Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: March 24, 2025

Language: Английский

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Semi-continuous hydrothermal waste valorization: facile protocol for monomer recovery from poly(bisphenol A carbonate)

The Journal of Supercritical Fluids, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown, P. 106610 - 106610

Published: March 1, 2025

Language: Английский

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Sustainable physical recycling of rigid PVC waste: A biobased solvent approach for the recovery of PVC, TiO2, and CaCO3

Waste Management, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 202, P. 114798 - 114798

Published: April 19, 2025

Language: Английский

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Multiscale mechanisms elucidation and kinetic modeling for polyethylene terephthalate separation pathways: A combined computational-experimental perspective on pyrolysis, hydrolysis, and alcoholysis processes

Separation and Purification Technology, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown, P. 133293 - 133293

Published: April 1, 2025

Language: Английский

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Hardener-Dependent Properties of Twice Renewable Epoxy Resins Combining Tailored Lignin Fractions and Recycled BPA

ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 12(24), P. 9279 - 9289

Published: June 5, 2024

The use of biosourced and/or recycled raw materials represents a promising strategy for making the polymer industry more renewable. In this context, both biobased lignin fractions and chemically bisphenol A (r-BPA) have been independently considered as renewable alternatives to aromatic fossil monomers. Here, thermosetting epoxies were designed by combining tailored r-BPA, while influence several hardeners on physical structure properties obtained resins was systematically investigated. To do so, phenolic groups r-BPA derived from polycarbonate waste solvent-extracted Kraft (EKL) glycidylated with epichlorohydrin. This led epoxy precursors diglycidyl ether (r-DGEBA) extracted lignin, respectively. Twenty different formulations then tailoring structural parameters resins, such hardener length functionality, epoxide/hardener (E/H) ratio, content. thermomechanical investigated structure–property relationships established, highlighting excellent tunable performance these epoxies. Finally, flexible coatings produced lower cross-link density that demonstrated performance, even 30% Overall, our results show how building blocks could be combined design superior in sustainable technical terms.

Language: Английский

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The catalytic activity of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) and post-synthetic modified MOF towards depolymerisation of polycarbonate

Applied Surface Science, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 673, P. 160894 - 160894

Published: Aug. 3, 2024

Chemical recycling of polycarbonate (PC) recovers valuable chemicals like monomers but often requires catalysts for mild reaction conditions and high conversion rates. This study explores the use metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) as PC methanolysis. We investigated catalytic activity amine-containing MOFs, specifically ZIF-8, MAF-6, UiO-66-NH2, which have basic active sites favouring depolymerisation. MOFs were characterised using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis. examined effects temperature, catalyst content, time on efficiency also conducted post-synthetic modification (PSM) MOF-5 to assess its performance in Methanolysis yielded bisphenol A (BPA) dimethyl carbonate (DMC), with rates confirmed by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). MOF significantly enhanced compared reactions without catalysts, ZIF-8 MAF-6 achieving nearly 100% conversion. PSM ethylenediamine (ED) led increased Additionally, MOF-based recovered reused up three cycles.

Language: Английский

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