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Synthesis and Characterization of a Novel Microporous Material from Polyethylene Terephthalate Plastic Waste
Summary
This study describes the synthesis and characterization of a novel microporous material derived from recycled PET plastic waste, exploring a value-added pathway for post-consumer plastic. The resulting material may have applications in adsorption, filtration, or catalysis, contributing to circular economy approaches for PET waste management.
Plastic waste, especially polyethylene terephthalate (PET), is one of the world's biggest environmental challenges. Its non-biodegradable nature has led to the accumulation of PET plastic waste, causing ecosystem damage and environmental pollution, including water and soil contamination. Effective and sustainable plastic waste management is a priority to reduce environmental impact. This study aims to utilize PET plastic waste as a microporous material and conduct characterization to understand and identify the physical and chemical properties of the material. PET plastic is synthesized by carbonization and physical activation. The carbonization process was carried out at a temperature of 400ºC for 240 minutes with a heating rate of 3°C/minute. Then, the process continued with physical activation using CO2 gas, at a temperature of 800°C for 240 minutes with a heating rate of 10°C/minute. Characterization of PET-activated carbon was obtained with an iodine number of 895.78 mg/g. The TGA-DTA graph shows a curve peak at a temperature of 367.80°C due to the decomposition of PET plastic caused by the carbonization process. Characterization of PET-activated carbon has a surface area of 428.141 m2/g with a pore volume of 0.4083 cm3/g and an average pore size of 19.07 Å (micropore category).