A focused review on recycling and hydrolysis techniques of polyethylene terephthalate

Hossein Abedsoltan

doi:10.1002/pen.26406

journal article Open Access Jun 21, 2023

A focused review on recycling and hydrolysis techniques of polyethylene terephthalate

Hossein Abedsoltan

Polymer Engineering & Science Vol. 63 No. 9 pp. 2651-2674 · Wiley

View at Publisher Save 10.1002/pen.26406

Abstract

AbstractPolyethylene terephthalate (PET) is used in textile and packaging industries. The main source of PET production is fossil fuels with limited capacity. Also, PET products are single use that transform into high volumes of wastes, causing ecosystem problems. Recycling is proposed to confront this challenge. The four major PET recycling techniques are mechanical, chemical, pyrolysis, and enzymatic. Mechanical, pyrolysis, and enzymatic techniques have constrained capabilities to manage PET waste. Chemical recycling is the potential path to expanding recycling PET waste with possibility of upcycling and addressing dirty waste streams. Several chemical methods are introduced and discussed in literature. The five major chemical recycling techniques are glycolysis, alcoholysis, aminolysis, ammonolysis, and hydrolysis. This review describes PET depolymerization via these techniques and introduces hydrolysis as the one that can depolymerize PET in an organic‐free solvent environment. Hydrolysis tolerates PET mixed wastes streams including copolymers. It helps avoid challenges attributed to using organic solvents in reaction systems. Moreover, hydrolysis produces terephthalic acid, PET monomer, which has recently gained attention as the initiative monomer for PET production. The review focuses on three forms of hydrolysis—alkaline, neutral, and acid, by presenting background studies, issued patents, and recent trends on application of hydrolysis.

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Metrics

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Citations

284

References

Details

Published: Jun 21, 2023
Vol/Issue: 63(9)
Pages: 2651-2674
License: View

Authors

H

Hossein Abedsoltan

Department of Chemical Engineering The University of Toledo Toledo Ohio USA

Funding

University of Toledo

Cite This Article

Hossein Abedsoltan (2023). A focused review on recycling and hydrolysis techniques of polyethylene terephthalate. Polymer Engineering & Science, 63(9), 2651-2674. https://doi.org/10.1002/pen.26406

A focused review on recycling and hydrolysis techniques of polyethylene terephthalate

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