Researchers explore converting plastic waste into clean fuels, other useful products

An albatross chick sits along a white sand beach at the Midway Atoll Wildlife Refuge amid plastic that covers the area even though it is not inhabited by humans. It is evidence of a global plastic problem. A new chemical conversion process developed by Purdue University researchers could transform the world’s polyolefin waste, a form of plastic, into useful products, such as clean fuels and other items. (NOAA photo)

This research connects with Purdue's 150 Years of Giant Leaps to a Sustainable World - Innovate Today for a Sustainable TomorrowA new chemical conversion process developed by Purdue University researchers could transform the world’s polyolefin waste, a form of plastic, into useful products, such as clean fuels and other items. The conversion process has been developed by a research team led by Linda Wang, the Maxine Spencer Nichols Professor in the Davidson School of Chemical Engineering.

Wang’s team is collaborating with Purdue Polytechnic’s Gozdem Kilaz, assistant professor of engineering technology, and her doctoral research assistant, Petr Vozka, in the Fuel Laboratory of Renewable Energy (FLORE). Kilaz and Vozka are working to optimize the conversion process to produce high-quality gasoline or diesel fuels.

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