We are proposing to examine the effectiveness of anthracite nanoplatelets for driving the photothermal recycling of commodity polymers, such as nylon, polyethylene, and polyurethane. These polymers are currently produced at industrial scales but are not recycled at scale. Instead, they are either burned for energy (releasing CO₂) or left in the environment (degrading into microplastics).
The challenge underpinning this problem is breaking strong chemical bonds, which typically requires either the development of catalysts or the application of general tools such as high temperatures. The former is a slow and expensive process. The latter, while more general, leads to indiscriminate bond breaking that yields products that are ultimately not useful, since the polymers contain multiple types of strong chemical bonds.
Recent work from Prof. Lear’s group has shown that photothermal heating by small particles can produce localized high temperatures that degrade polymers with chemical specificity—promising a new and general approach to polymer recycling. However, this early work used gold nanoparticles, which are not economically viable at industrial scales. Thus, there is a need to identify inexpensive and effective photothermal agents.
Anthracite is a strongly light-absorbing material that is inexpensive, abundant, and mined extensively in Pennsylvania. Prof. Mathews and Prof. Adair have expertise in efficiently producing, characterizing, and handling nanoplatelets at scale—making this material a promising new photothermal agent.
The work we are proposing seeks to pair the expertise of these three investigators from two colleges. We will produce nanoplatelet anthracite, disperse these particles within commodity polymers, and then test their effectiveness as agents for photothermal recycling of polymers. The work that precedes this proposal strongly suggests that we will be successful, thereby identifying a new approach to mitigating the burning of polymers and the generation of microplastics, increasing the energy efficiency of recycling polymers, and expanding alternative uses of coal—which is expected to have positive regional economic impacts for Pennsylvania.
We will use the results of this IEE-supported work to pursue federal grants aimed at further exploring the interaction between anthracite and polymers, as well as strategies for controlling the recycling of these polymer composites.
