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Waste Plastics Management and Conversion into Liquid Fuels and Carbon Materials

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Advanced and Emerging Technologies for Resource Recovery from Wastes

Part of the book series: Green Chemistry and Sustainable Technology ((GCST))

Abstract

This chapter overviews the generation and conventional disposal of waste plastics and conversion technologies for production of high-value products (liquid fuels and carbon materials) from waste plastics along with advantages and disadvantages of each conversion method. Waste plastics are mostly disposed of in landfills, incinerated or openly burned, which results in GHG production, contamination of the environment and creation of various health, economic, and social impacts. Recycling of plastics is an economically and environmentally viable alternative to the traditional disposal methods, however, due to the recycling challenges such as labor-intensive need for sorting and the fact that a large portion of plastics have poor quality and are unable to be reused, conversion technologies are more promising. Plastics and resins can be converted into different types of high-value products such as liquid fuels through thermal and catalytic cracking, hydrocracking/treatment. They can also be converted into syngas, naphtha and gas oil using gasification and hydrogenation. Since the carbon content of the plastics is high, producing carbon materials from waste plastics is another valuable option for plastics and resins conversion. Activated carbons with high surface areas could be produced from waste plastics or other polymers (cellulose and biomass) first by carbonization to form charcoals with or without catalysts, followed by physical or chemical activation. A proper waste plastics management (recycling and conversion to liquid fuels or carbon materials) can divert the waste plastics disposed of by landfilling and incineration, hence reducing the amount of harmful chemicals and emissions going to the air, water and soil. It can also preserve the life of aquatic animals that are suffocated by ingesting waste plastics and reduce the need for extraction of virgin materials and consumption of fossil fuels for plastics production, leading to the conservation of natural resources.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Western University, London, ON, Canada

    Laleh Nazari, Chunbao (Charles) Xu & Madhumita B. Ray

Authors
  1. Laleh Nazari
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  2. Chunbao (Charles) Xu
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  3. Madhumita B. Ray
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Correspondence to Laleh Nazari .

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Nazari, L., Xu, C.(., Ray, M.B. (2021). Waste Plastics Management and Conversion into Liquid Fuels and Carbon Materials. In: Advanced and Emerging Technologies for Resource Recovery from Wastes. Green Chemistry and Sustainable Technology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9267-6_6

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