Rational Design of Chemical Catalysis for Plastic Recycling

作者：Mingyu Chu, Yu Liu, Xiangxi Lou, Qiao Zhang, Jinxing Chen · 发表于：ACS Catalysis · 年份：2022 · DOI：10.1021/acscatal.2c01286 · 被引用次数：389 · 研究领域：Microplastics and Plastic Pollution、biodegradable polymer synthesis and properties、Recycling and Waste Management Techniques

Plastics are indispensable, but their pollution is triggering a global environmental crisis. Although many end-of-life catalytic options have involved converting plastics into valuable products, a deep understanding of the relationship between polymer structure and recycling performance is significant and urgently needed. Here, we start with a primer of polymeric chain structures on chemical recycling and discuss the structure–performance relationship between the polymer, catalyst, and catalytic reaction. Specifically, the development and challenges of the chemical re/upcycling of waste PET and polyolefins are discussed in-depth. In addition, we also present some prospects for innovations in catalyst synthesis and reaction engineering on the basis of the structure–performance relationship. The discussion ends with a brief perspective on the future of plastic re/upcycling. Overall, intelligent catalysis design is necessary for incentivizing the chemical recycling of plastics and relieving the burden of waste plastics.