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Oxidative transformation of microwave-activated microplastics via catalytic wet peroxide oxidation
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Scientists developed a new chemical process that can break down two common types of plastic (found in bags and food containers) using a cheap, metal-free catalyst, hydrogen peroxide, and heat—turning harmful microplastics into either harmless byproducts or useful chemicals. This matters because microplastics are increasingly found in our water, food, and even our bodies, and this method could offer a practical, scalable way to remove them from wastewater before they spread further into the environment and our food chain.
Catalytic wet peroxide oxidation (CWPO) is introduced as a novel advanced oxidation process (AOP) for treating microwave-activated microplastics (MPs), specifically LDPE and PP. Graphite was used as a metal-free catalyst to promote H 2 O 2 decomposition into reactive oxygen species (HO· and HOO·) that drive plastic oxidation in aqueous phase. The effects of H 2 O 2 dosage, temperature, reaction time, MP concentration and graphite loading were evaluated in terms of plastic conversion, morphological changes, carbon distribution in gas and aqueous phases and the nature of oxidation by-products. Without H 2 O 2 , plastic transformation mainly produced gaseous compounds, whereas H 2 O 2 shifted the pathway toward oxygenated water-soluble products, including ketones, aldehydes, alcohols, and short-chain carboxylic acids. Higher temperatures increased MP conversion, while shorter reaction times limited over-oxidation of dissolved organic carbon. At high MP concentration (8 g L −1 ) under 180 °C, 2 h, MP:graphite = 8:2 c c −1 , MP:H 2 O 2 = 8:40 c c −1 , up to 40 wt% of the initial carbon (2725 mg C L −1 ) was recovered in the aqueous phase (~25 wt% as short-chain carboxylic acids). At lower MP concentration (1 g L −1 ) with MP:graphite = 1:1 c c −1 and MP: H 2 O 2 = 1:5 c c −1 , complete MP conversion was achieved under the same temperature and time. Overall, CWPO stands out among AOPs by operating under realistic conditions (180 °C, 2 h) for scalability and efficiently treating high MP loadings. These results highlight CWPO as a versatile process that can be directed toward either the complete MP removal or selective production of value-added chemical products.
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