KarunaNews Story

Researchers have developed a new chemical process that transforms plastic waste into an effective carbon capture material, addressing two environmental challenges at once: plastic pollution and greenhouse-gas emissions. Ji-Woong Lee, a chemist at the University of Copenhagen and Aarhus University, and his team treated PET waste at mild temperatures with a chemical called 1,2-ethylenediamine. After 24 hours, the PET was converted into a powdery substance called bis-aminoamide (BAETA), which can be made into pellets for use in industrial exhaust pipes.. Lee and colleagues now plan to scale up and test the material under real-world conditions. This is not the first time researchers have made carbon capture materials from plastic waste. Three years ago, another team reported a way to heat plastic waste in the absence of oxygen to make an ultra-porous sponge-like material that soaks up carbon dioxide.