Papers

61,005 results
|
Article Tier 2

Hydrogen production from plastic waste: A comprehensive simulation and machine learning study

Researchers used computer simulations and machine learning to optimize hydrogen production from polystyrene and polypropylene plastic waste through gasification. They found that increasing the gasification temperature up to 900 degrees Celsius significantly boosted hydrogen output, while higher pressures reduced production. The study demonstrates that converting plastic waste into hydrogen fuel could be an efficient way to address both energy needs and plastic pollution.

2024 International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 27 citations
Article Tier 2

Feasibility of gasifying mixed plastic waste for hydrogen production and carbon capture and storage

A techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment of gasifying mixed plastic waste for hydrogen production combined with carbon capture and storage found a minimum hydrogen selling price of US$2.26-2.94 per kg, competitive with fossil fuel hydrogen with carbon capture. The analysis supports plastic waste gasification as both an economically viable and climate-beneficial approach to addressing the plastic waste challenge.

2022 Communications Earth & Environment 63 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastic Waste Valorization: Prospects for Green Hydrogen Production

This review assesses the feasibility of producing green hydrogen from plastic waste through pyrolysis and gasification, comparing process efficiency, costs, and carbon emissions across different plastic feedstocks. The authors identify polyolefins as particularly promising feedstocks and outline the technical and economic barriers to scaling these processes.

2024 Current Green Chemistry 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Harvesting marine plastic pollutants-derived renewable energy: A comprehensive review on applied energy and sustainable approach.

This review summarized recent research on recovering renewable energy from marine plastic waste through biological, chemical, and thermal conversion processes, evaluating each pathway's carbon efficiency, global warming potential, and economic viability as part of a circular economy approach to plastic pollution.

2023 Journal of environmental management
Article Tier 2

Optimisation of Process Parameters to Maximise the Oil Yield from Pyrolysis of Mixed Waste Plastics

Researchers optimized the process parameters for thermal pyrolysis of mixed waste plastics to maximize oil yield from HDPE, polypropylene, and polystyrene. The study used response surface methodology to identify ideal conditions for converting plastic waste into pyrolytic oil, supporting chemical recycling as a strategy to reduce plastic pollution.

2024 Sustainability 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Harnessing Pyrolysis for Industrial Energy Autonomy and Sustainable Waste Management

Researchers designed a small-scale pyrolysis system that converts plastic waste into synthetic oil for industrial energy generation. The proposed unit processes 360 tons of plastic waste yearly to produce fuel capable of generating 500 MWh of electricity, with a total investment cost of approximately EUR 41,000 and potential annual revenue of up to EUR 45,000.

2025 Energies 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Methodology for integrating lumped kinetic models and decision-making frameworks to enhance sustainability of plastic waste pyrolysis

Researchers developed a multi-scale methodology linking laboratory pyrolysis kinetics to high-level sustainability decision-making, demonstrating that using pyrolysis gas for heat supply maximizes circularity while selling LPG byproducts yields the highest profit, offering a replicable framework for evaluating plastic waste conversion options.

2026 Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy
Article Tier 2

Optimizing plastics recycling networks

Researchers developed mathematical optimization models — including linear programming tools — to help plan efficient plastic recycling networks that can tolerate some contamination from mixed plastic waste streams. These models could help overcome a key barrier to large-scale recycling by intelligently matching waste sources with the plants best equipped to handle them.

2023 Cleaner Engineering and Technology 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Economic feasibility of catalytic cracking of polymer waste for fuel production

This study analyzed the economic feasibility of catalytic cracking of polyethylene and polypropylene plastic waste to produce liquid fuel, finding that the process can be cost-competitive under certain conditions. Converting plastic waste into fuel reduces the amount that degrades into microplastics in the environment while generating economic value.

2023 Revista de Geografia
Article Tier 2

Plastic regulates its co-pyrolysis process with biomass: Influencing factors, model calculations, and mechanisms

Researchers investigated co-pyrolysis of plastics and biomass, finding that varying the hydrogen-to-carbon ratio of biomass feedstocks influences synergistic effects on bio-oil quality, offering a strategy to improve plastic waste valorization.

2022 Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Reimagining plastics waste as energy solutions: challenges and opportunities

This review examines the potential of converting plastic waste into energy through waste-to-energy and waste-to-fuel technologies, particularly in developing nations where recycling infrastructure is limited. Researchers assessed various conversion methods including pyrolysis and gasification, evaluating their efficiency and environmental trade-offs. The study emphasizes that energy recovery from plastic waste could help address both the growing plastic pollution crisis and energy needs in underserved regions.

2024 npj Materials Sustainability 26 citations
Article Tier 2

Comprehensive Insights into Photoreforming of Waste Plastics for Hydrogen Production

This review examines photocatalytic "photoreforming" — a solar-powered process that breaks down waste plastics while simultaneously generating hydrogen fuel and useful chemical byproducts. Recent advances in catalyst design, including semiconductor materials and metal-organic frameworks, are analyzed alongside factors like light intensity and pH that affect hydrogen output. This dual-purpose approach could help address both the global plastic waste crisis and the need for clean energy simultaneously.

2025 Preprints.org 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Business development from plastic wastes toward circular economy

This book chapter reviews how plastic waste can be converted into valuable materials or energy through various business models aligned with circular economy principles. Developing economically viable pathways for plastic waste recovery is essential for reducing the flow of plastics into the environment.

2023 IWA Publishing eBooks
Article Tier 2

Pinch-Based Synthesis of Plastics Recycling Networks

This paper applied pinch analysis — an engineering optimization method originally used for energy systems — to design more efficient plastic recycling networks. The approach identifies where recycling streams can be combined or redirected to minimize waste and cost. The framework could help industries and policymakers design more effective plastic circular economy systems.

2022 SHILAP Revista de lepidopterología 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Chemoenzymatic Photoreforming: A Sustainable Approach for Solar-fuel Generation from Plastic Feedstocks

Researchers developed a hybrid process combining enzyme pretreatment with solar-driven photoreforming to convert polyester plastic waste into clean hydrogen fuel and valuable chemicals under mild conditions. This approach offers a way to clean up plastic pollution while generating renewable energy simultaneously.

2023 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Comparison of Plastic Waste Processing Machine Models in The Producing of Plastic Grains and Oil Fuel and Its Cost Analysis

Researchers compared three plastic waste processing machine models with one, two, and three distillation chambers, evaluating their production of plastic pellets and fuel oil through heating and distillation, and conducted break-even point analysis to assess economic viability.

2024 Jurnal Teknologi Lingkungan
Article Tier 2

Mini-review on remediation of plastic pollution through photoreforming: progress, possibilities, and challenges.

This mini-review examines photoreforming — a solar-powered process that converts plastic waste into valuable chemicals and hydrogen fuel — as a promising approach to reducing plastic pollution while generating clean energy. The authors review progress in the technology, assess remaining challenges such as efficiency and scalability, and place it in the context of other plastic waste remediation strategies.

2023 Environmental science and pollution research international
Article Tier 2

Global Plastic Industry Transition Addressing Key Drivers of the Triple Planetary Crisis

Researchers modelled global and regional transition scenarios for the plastic industry, integrating strategies to reduce fossil fuel dependence and shift to circular production models. They found that addressing plastic pollution, climate change, and biodiversity loss simultaneously requires a coordinated policy package across the full plastic value chain.

2025 Environmental Science & Technology
Article Tier 2

Building a bridge from solid wastes to solar fuels and chemicals via artificial photosynthesis

This review examined photoreforming (PR) as a process that converts solid plastic and other waste materials into hydrogen fuel and value-added chemicals using solar energy, combining waste remediation with clean fuel production. The authors assessed photocatalyst design strategies that enable efficient PR of diverse waste streams including polyethylene and polypropylene.

2022 EcoMat 41 citations
Article Tier 2

Techno-Economic Review of Pyrolysis and Gasification Plants for Thermochemical Recovery of Plastic Waste and Economic Viability Assessment of Small-Scale Implementation

This review evaluates the technical and economic viability of pyrolysis and gasification for converting plastic waste into fuel, finding that small-scale implementation faces significant cost challenges. Converting plastic waste into fuel reduces the amount available to degrade into microplastics in the environment, but economic barriers limit widespread adoption.

2023 Research Square (Research Square) 1 citations
Article Tier 2

A State-of-the-Art Review on the Technological Advancements for the Sustainable Management of Plastic Waste in Consort with the Generation of Energy and Value-Added Chemicals

This review examined technological advances for converting plastic waste into energy and value-added chemicals, covering pyrolysis, gasification, and catalytic processes as sustainable alternatives to landfilling, given that global plastic waste generation reached approximately 380 million tonnes in 2022.

2023 Catalysts 37 citations
Article Tier 2

Moving from Linear to Circular Economy in Saudi Arabia: Life-Cycle Assessment on Plastic Waste Management

Researchers conducted a life-cycle assessment comparing five different plastic waste management approaches in Saudi Arabia, from landfilling to recycling and incineration. They found that mechanical recycling combined with energy recovery had the lowest overall environmental impact, while landfilling, the country's current dominant practice, performed the worst. The study provides a data-driven roadmap for Saudi Arabia's transition from a linear to circular economy for plastic waste management.

2023 Sustainability 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Rescuing the Environment: Turning (Micro)plastics into Energy Through Gasification

This review examines how plastic waste could be converted to energy through gasification, potentially reducing the amount of plastic entering waterways as microplastics. Converting plastic waste to gas or fuel is presented as one strategy for managing the large global plastic waste burden.

2018 U Porto Journal of Engineering 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Fuel cell and electrolyzer using plastic waste directly as fuel

Researchers demonstrated an electrochemical cell that converts solid plastic waste directly into electricity or hydrogen gas without incineration or gasification, using an acidic solution to dissolve polyurethane at 100–200 °C and oxidize it at a porous carbon anode.

2019 Waste Management 33 citations