University of California, Riverside, method creates useful char from plastic and corn waste. University of California, Riverside, scientists have moved a step closer to finding a use for the hundreds of millions of tons of plastic waste produced every year that often winds up clogging streams and
A recent study has detailed a method of converting plastic waste into a highly porous form of charcoal that has a large surface area of about 400 square meters per gram of mass. This charcoal has the potential to capture carbon and improve soil water retention and aeration of farmlands, while also fertilizing the soil as it naturally breaks down. This method could be an effective way to address plastic waste problem and enhance agriculture.
The plastic-to-char process was developed at UC Riverside’s Marlan and Rosemary Bourns College of Engineering. It involved mixing one of two common types of plastic with corn waste — the leftover stalks, leaves, husks, and cobs — collectively known as corn stover. The mix was then cooked with highly compressed hot water, a process known as hydrothermal carbonization.
“We theorize that there could be still some residual plastic on the surface of the materials, which is preventing the absorption of some of these molecules on the surface,” she said.Still, the ability to make highly porous charcoal by combining plastic and plant biomass waste is an important discovery, as detailed in, “Synergistic and Antagonistic Effects of the Co-Pyrolysis of Plastics and Corn Stover to Produce Char and Activated Carbon,” published in the journal ACS Omega.
Unfortunately, it costs more to recycle used plastic than it costs to make new plastic from petroleum.
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