It is recognized that the removal of waste polymer materials from the environment represents a significant reprocessing problem. An ideal process is one that converts the polymers to a narrow range of organic molecules that can be easily recovered and reused. We will accomplish this by exploiting microwave-driven catalytic decomposition of polymers. WVU researchers have developed a patent-pending technology based on microwave catalysis that can convert waste plastics into hydrogen and monomers.
Affiliated Faculty
Recent Publications
- (US Patent Application): Jianli Hu, Yuxin Wang, Method to Convert Waste Plastics into Value-Added Chemicals Using Microwave-Assisted Catalysis, U.S. Provisional Patent Application# 63021318 May 7, 2020.