Improving the Sustainability of Catalytic Glycolysis of Complex PET Waste through Bio-Solvolysis
This work addresses a novel bio-solvolysis process for the treatment of complex poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) waste using a biobased monoethylene glycol (BioMEG) as a depolymerization agent in order to achieve a more sustainable chemical recycling process. Five difficult-to-recycle PET waste st...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2024-01-01
|
| Series: | Polymers |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/16/1/142 |
| _version_ | 1797358263604346880 |
|---|---|
| author | Izotz Amundarain Sheila López-Montenegro Laura Fulgencio-Medrano Jon Leivar Ana Iruskieta Asier Asueta Rafael Miguel-Fernández Sixto Arnaiz Beñat Pereda-Ayo |
| author_facet | Izotz Amundarain Sheila López-Montenegro Laura Fulgencio-Medrano Jon Leivar Ana Iruskieta Asier Asueta Rafael Miguel-Fernández Sixto Arnaiz Beñat Pereda-Ayo |
| author_sort | Izotz Amundarain |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This work addresses a novel bio-solvolysis process for the treatment of complex poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) waste using a biobased monoethylene glycol (BioMEG) as a depolymerization agent in order to achieve a more sustainable chemical recycling process. Five difficult-to-recycle PET waste streams, including multilayer trays, coloured bottles and postconsumer textiles, were selected for the study. After characterization and conditioning of the samples, an evaluation of the proposed bio-solvolysis process was carried out by monitoring the reaction over time to determine the degree of PET conversion (91.3–97.1%) and bis(2-hydroxyethyl) terephthalate (BHET) monomer yield (71.5–76.3%). A monomer purification process, using activated carbon (AC), was also developed to remove the colour and to reduce the metal content of the solid. By applying this purification strategy, the whiteness (L*) of the BHET greatly increased from around 60 to over 95 (L* = 100 for pure white) and the Zn content was significantly reduced from around 200 to 2 mg/kg. The chemical structure of the purified monomers was analyzed via infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and the composition of the samples was measured by proton nuclear magnetic resonance (<sup>1</sup>H-NMR), proving a high purity of the monomers with a BHET content up to 99.5% in mol. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T14:59:22Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6c0e5170c7a94353851e3d3105d7305c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4360 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T14:59:22Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Polymers |
| spelling | doaj.art-6c0e5170c7a94353851e3d3105d7305c2024-01-10T15:06:58ZengMDPI AGPolymers2073-43602024-01-0116114210.3390/polym16010142Improving the Sustainability of Catalytic Glycolysis of Complex PET Waste through Bio-SolvolysisIzotz Amundarain0Sheila López-Montenegro1Laura Fulgencio-Medrano2Jon Leivar3Ana Iruskieta4Asier Asueta5Rafael Miguel-Fernández6Sixto Arnaiz7Beñat Pereda-Ayo8GAIKER Technology Centre, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Parque Tecnológico de Bizkaia, Edificio 202, 48170 Zamudio, SpainDepartment of Chemical Engineering, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Barrio Sarriena s/n, 48940 Leioa, SpainGAIKER Technology Centre, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Parque Tecnológico de Bizkaia, Edificio 202, 48170 Zamudio, SpainGAIKER Technology Centre, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Parque Tecnológico de Bizkaia, Edificio 202, 48170 Zamudio, SpainGAIKER Technology Centre, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Parque Tecnológico de Bizkaia, Edificio 202, 48170 Zamudio, SpainGAIKER Technology Centre, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Parque Tecnológico de Bizkaia, Edificio 202, 48170 Zamudio, SpainGAIKER Technology Centre, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Parque Tecnológico de Bizkaia, Edificio 202, 48170 Zamudio, SpainGAIKER Technology Centre, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Parque Tecnológico de Bizkaia, Edificio 202, 48170 Zamudio, SpainDepartment of Chemical Engineering, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Barrio Sarriena s/n, 48940 Leioa, SpainThis work addresses a novel bio-solvolysis process for the treatment of complex poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) waste using a biobased monoethylene glycol (BioMEG) as a depolymerization agent in order to achieve a more sustainable chemical recycling process. Five difficult-to-recycle PET waste streams, including multilayer trays, coloured bottles and postconsumer textiles, were selected for the study. After characterization and conditioning of the samples, an evaluation of the proposed bio-solvolysis process was carried out by monitoring the reaction over time to determine the degree of PET conversion (91.3–97.1%) and bis(2-hydroxyethyl) terephthalate (BHET) monomer yield (71.5–76.3%). A monomer purification process, using activated carbon (AC), was also developed to remove the colour and to reduce the metal content of the solid. By applying this purification strategy, the whiteness (L*) of the BHET greatly increased from around 60 to over 95 (L* = 100 for pure white) and the Zn content was significantly reduced from around 200 to 2 mg/kg. The chemical structure of the purified monomers was analyzed via infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and the composition of the samples was measured by proton nuclear magnetic resonance (<sup>1</sup>H-NMR), proving a high purity of the monomers with a BHET content up to 99.5% in mol.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/16/1/142poly(ethylene terephthalate) wastechemical recyclingglycolysisbiobasedmonomerpurification |
| spellingShingle | Izotz Amundarain Sheila López-Montenegro Laura Fulgencio-Medrano Jon Leivar Ana Iruskieta Asier Asueta Rafael Miguel-Fernández Sixto Arnaiz Beñat Pereda-Ayo Improving the Sustainability of Catalytic Glycolysis of Complex PET Waste through Bio-Solvolysis Polymers poly(ethylene terephthalate) waste chemical recycling glycolysis biobased monomer purification |
| title | Improving the Sustainability of Catalytic Glycolysis of Complex PET Waste through Bio-Solvolysis |
| title_full | Improving the Sustainability of Catalytic Glycolysis of Complex PET Waste through Bio-Solvolysis |
| title_fullStr | Improving the Sustainability of Catalytic Glycolysis of Complex PET Waste through Bio-Solvolysis |
| title_full_unstemmed | Improving the Sustainability of Catalytic Glycolysis of Complex PET Waste through Bio-Solvolysis |
| title_short | Improving the Sustainability of Catalytic Glycolysis of Complex PET Waste through Bio-Solvolysis |
| title_sort | improving the sustainability of catalytic glycolysis of complex pet waste through bio solvolysis |
| topic | poly(ethylene terephthalate) waste chemical recycling glycolysis biobased monomer purification |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/16/1/142 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT izotzamundarain improvingthesustainabilityofcatalyticglycolysisofcomplexpetwastethroughbiosolvolysis AT sheilalopezmontenegro improvingthesustainabilityofcatalyticglycolysisofcomplexpetwastethroughbiosolvolysis AT laurafulgenciomedrano improvingthesustainabilityofcatalyticglycolysisofcomplexpetwastethroughbiosolvolysis AT jonleivar improvingthesustainabilityofcatalyticglycolysisofcomplexpetwastethroughbiosolvolysis AT anairuskieta improvingthesustainabilityofcatalyticglycolysisofcomplexpetwastethroughbiosolvolysis AT asierasueta improvingthesustainabilityofcatalyticglycolysisofcomplexpetwastethroughbiosolvolysis AT rafaelmiguelfernandez improvingthesustainabilityofcatalyticglycolysisofcomplexpetwastethroughbiosolvolysis AT sixtoarnaiz improvingthesustainabilityofcatalyticglycolysisofcomplexpetwastethroughbiosolvolysis AT benatperedaayo improvingthesustainabilityofcatalyticglycolysisofcomplexpetwastethroughbiosolvolysis |