Sustainability Momentum Sdn Bhd


Plastic Bags to Power Machines? maybe even Vehicles?

Scientists from the National Institute of Technology and the Centurion University of Technology and Management Odisha in India have found a process to extract low-density polyethylene plastics (LDPE) from waste plastic bags and convert it into a usable fuel. The plastic waste is broken down through thermo-catalytic degradation which involves gentle heating at a temperature of around 400 Celsius using kaolin as the catalyst. High petrochemical content within long chain polymers of the plastic bags are then released. Although it is yet to be applied at a large scale, this waste-to-energy fuel could potentially power machinery or even vehicles.

Link: http://inhabitat.com/researchers-recycle-plastic-bags-into-usable-fuel/

Date and Source: 30 January 2014, Inhabitat.com