Abu Dhabi researchers develop efficient, non-toxic method to upcycle single-use plastics – News

Existing methods to convert waste plastics into carbon dots involve multiple time-consuming steps and use toxic chemicals

A team of researchers at New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) has developed a single-step organic, solvent-free hydrothermal process to convert polyethylene-based plastic bags and polypropylene-based surgical masks into carbon dots.

An estimated 26,000 metric tons of pandemic-related plastic waste — from medical waste to online shopping packaging — has been released into the world’s oceans, making finding effective ways to upcycle this non-degradable material all the more urgent.

One solution is to convert single-use plastics into so-called carbon dots (biocompatible carbon nanomaterials), which have found applications in areas such as bioimaging, environmental monitoring, chemical analysis, targeted drug delivery, and disease diagnosis and treatment. application, and anti-counterfeiting.

Existing methods for upgrading plastics to carbon dots involve multiple time-consuming steps and use toxic chemicals.

In a study titled “High-yield, one-pot upcycling of polyethylene and polypropylene waste into blue-light carbon dots” published in the journal green Chemistryresearchers present the development of a new synthetic method, which is a simple, cost-effective and highly scalable method for upcycling plastic waste.

Importantly, this oxo-degradation method can upcycle plastics contaminated with organic waste such as food residues, which presents a major challenge to conventional recycling techniques.

The study’s senior authors are Khalil Ramadi, an NYU assistant professor of bioengineering; NYU scientist Mohammed Abdelhameed; and NYU undergraduate Mahmoud Elbeh, who is the study’s lead author.

The researchers also estimated the economic feasibility of the synthesis method by comparing the variable costs of the process with existing chemical recycling processes, taking into account the economic value of the carbon dots produced. They found that the global market value of carbon dots is expected to grow from $2.5 billion in 2019 to $6.4 billion by 2025—a high commercial value that justifies the associated processing costs.

Manage non-biodegradable waste

The sheer volume of single-use plastics used during the pandemic, especially surgical masks and medical waste, has heightened the need to find a solution to manage non-biodegradable waste. An estimated 14% of eligible plastic packaging (whose use has skyrocketed due to the boom in online shopping) is recycled, with the rest ending up in landfills and oceans, causing considerable harm. These materials can be consumed by organisms or broken down into micro- and nanoplastics, potentially threatening terrestrial, marine and freshwater ecosystems and, ultimately, human health.

“The new method developed by our team is a cost-effective and safe way that can be easily implemented to significantly reduce the amount of harmful plastics released into our ecosystems,” Ramadi said. “In addition to providing new tools to protect our ecosystems, this approach could allow for the efficient and responsible production of carbon dots, a versatile nanotechnology whose potential applications are virtually limitless.”

Elbeh said: “We are delighted to further support the UAE’s circular economy policy. Given that we are tackling the plastic waste crisis by creating valuable products using relatively easy-to-implement methods, we look forward to more collaborations not only to scale up this project , and the generated points can be used for further development and application”