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Recent advances in catalytic technologies for plastic conversion: a review
Summary
This review paper rounds up the latest science on turning plastic waste into useful fuels and chemicals using special catalysts, think of it as recycling plastic at the molecular level instead of just melting it down. While this isn't directly about microplastics in your body, better plastic-conversion technology could mean less plastic waste sitting around breaking down into the microplastics that end up in our water, food, and eventually our bloodstreams. The bigger picture: fewer plastics discarded in landfills or oceans means fewer opportunities for them to fragment into the tiny particles scientists are increasingly linking to health concerns.
The massive accumulation of plastic waste poses severe challenges to both the ecological environment and the sustainable utilization of hydrocarbon resources. Catalytic conversion technology, which enables the efficient transformation of plastics into high-value-added fuels and chemicals, represents a key pathway to address plastic pollution. This paper systematically reviews the research progress on catalytic conversion strategies tailored to different types of plastics, including polyolefins, polyesters, and other common plastics. It focuses on the performance of various catalytic technologies—such as thermocatalysis, photocatalysis, electrocatalysis, and biocatalysis—in the conversion of plastics and briefly describes the corresponding mechanisms underlying the transformation of plastics into valuable chemicals or fuels. Furthermore, future directions for the development of plastic catalytic conversion technologies are discussed, with particular emphasis on catalyst design, process optimization, and product selectivity control. This review aims to provide a theoretical reference for the resource utilization of plastic waste and to contribute to the advancement of a circular economy in the plastic sector.