Search NASA⌕ Search
Home/Archive/DOE OSTI

DOE OSTI · 3017985

Decarboxylation-Triggered Polymer Deconstruction

Gitter, Sean R. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000324265321)·Eades, Cabell B. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000152168022)·Lott, Megan E. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000198546252)·Hughes, Rhys W. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:000000031751051X)·Evans, Austin M. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000235972454)·Sumerlin, Brent S. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000157495444)
View original source ↗Read source document ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

Decarboxylation is an emerging strategy to remediate plastic waste. Herein, we discuss recent advances that leverage activated ester or carboxylic acid decarboxylation to deconstruct polymers. Specifically, we address state-of-the-art strategies that rely on thermolytic, photolytic, or electrolytic stimuli to induce decarboxylation. Throughout, we highlight the key advances of each report and provide our insight on future directions for the field. We anticipate that continued developments in the field will lead to strategies for the controlled deconstruction of versatile polymeric materials.

Explore related subjects

chemical recyclingdecarboxylationdepolymerizationelectrochemistryphotochemistrysustainabilityupcycling

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Gitter, Sean R. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000324265321), Eades, Cabell B. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000152168022), Lott, Megan E. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000198546252), Hughes, Rhys W. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:000000031751051X), Evans, Austin M. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000235972454), Sumerlin, Brent S. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000157495444). 2025-11-27. Decarboxylation-Triggered Polymer Deconstruction. https://doi.org/10.1021/acspolymersau.5c00146

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related reports

DOE OSTI2026

Multilevel Analysis of Electrochemically Mediated Methanolysis of Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET)

Here, this study presents a multilevel analysis of electrochemically mediated methanolysis as a promising method for reducing the environmental impacts of plastic recycling, with a focus on depolymerizing poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) into dimethyl terephthalate (DMT). Instead of conventional chemical PET depolymerization, this electrochemical approach provides distinct technical advantages in process control and efficiency. At the process level, key operational parameters, including applied current and reaction time, were systematically investigated to optimize PET conversion and DMT selectivity. The electrochemical approach was directly compared to equivalent chemical methanolysis systems and demonstrated superior performance in terms of PET conversion and DMT selectivity. Building on these findings, a technoeconomic assessment identified the current economic bottlenecks and revealed that improvements in process design, DMT selectivity, PET conversion, and energy efficiency are key to reducing the overall process cost and enabling future implementation. While further optimization is required for market competitiveness, these results establish a performance baseline for the electrochemically mediated PET methanolysis process and underscore the importance of combining process-level innovation with systems-level evaluation in the development of sustainable recycling technologies.

chemical recycling↗
DOE OSTI2026

Delamination of Multilayer Plastic Films to Recover Polyethylene with Favorable Mechanical Properties

Multilayer plastic films play a critical role in packaging, with each polymer layer contributing specific properties to the multilayer film. Multilayer plastic films are not currently recyclable due to the bound polymers. With multilayer film production of about 20 million metric tons in 2024 and rising, endof- life treatment becomes pressing. This work presents a scalable solvent-based delamination recycling process that is applied to commercial postindustrial multimaterial films to unbind the materials within a multilayer film by dissolving only the adhesive layer and recover polyethylene (PE) as an intact solid film. Solventbased delamination is a simple process that allows the complete recovery of materials and solvents used in the process. The delaminating solvent, 88% formic acid in water, induces delamination of PE/PEI/PET and PE/PU/PET films at 70 °C in under an hour. Recovered PE has no contamination detected by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and mechanical properties on par with those of virgin resin. The recovery of high-quality solid PE film fit for reprocessing, at low operating temperatures and with closed-loop solvent reuse, promotes delamination as a low energy consumption and environmentally friendly recycling process. PE recovered from delamination can be reused in equivalent products, promoting circularity of multimaterial films.

chemical recycling↗