New Mexico, US – A project led by Sandia National Laboratory has been awarded a $2.4m grant by the US Department of Energy to develop a catalytic process that would transform waste polyolefins into dicarboxylic acids. These could then be used to manufacture chemically recycled polymers with a reduced carbon footprint, including polyurethanes.
The project is a collaboration between Sandia and Algenesis, Sulzer Chemtec, Meredian Bioplastics and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Algenesis will work on transforming these dicarboxylic acids into polyols and isocyanates for sustainable polyurethanes.
Polyolefins sourced from material recovery facilities will be deconstructed under mild conditions using pre-processing technologies and a catalytic oxidation process. The partners are claiming potential carbon emission reductions of more than 60% and energy consumption of 30% compared with fossil-derived derivatives.
Algenesis said in a statement that the grant fuels its mission to turn today’s plastics problems into tomorrow’s biodegradable solutions.
The project is one of 66 selected by DOE as part of a $136m funding initiative aimed at supporting the R&D of transformational technologies essential for reducing energy demand and improving American productivity in key industrial sub-sectors.
Projects were selected in six topic areas: chemicals and fuels; iron and steel; food and beverage; building infrastructure; forest products; and industrial pre-FEED studies.