Iranian Scientists Use Green Technology to Recycle Plastic Waste into Raw Materials
“Plastics and bottles enter nature after consumption and require about 400 to 500 years, and this long time causes pollution and other problems like microplastics,” Tayyebeh Sangchi, a graduate of Amirkabir University's Faculty of Chemistry in the field of Applied Chemistry.
“In this research project, in order to recycle and recover plastic materials, used polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles are converted into raw materials. These raw materials are monomers that are reused in PET production and have the ability to enter the natural cycle and be processed in nature,” she added.
“Following the recycling stage, we enter the recovery stage, in which the monomers are used to remanufacture the PET bottle. The recycling stage can also be continued so that the monomers are converted into primary compounds such as biomass,” Sangchi said.
She explained that recycling in this method consists of two stages, noting, “First, mechanical recycling which involves crushing the PET bottle, and second, the chemical recycling which is defined by exposing the bottle fragments to a chemical environment.”
Head of the Materials and Energy Research Institute of Iran announced in April that a joint specialized center for catalyst production and recycling will be launched in cooperation with a knowledge-based company active in the petrochemical field.
“A specialized catalyst manufacturing and recycling center will be built in the Science and Technology Park of Materials and Energy Research Institute to meet Iran’s needs to key catalysts,” Hamid Omidvar said.
He pointed to the endorsement of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a knowledge-based company active in the field of petrochemicals, and said, “This cooperation will focus on creation of knowledge-based companies in the Materials and Energy Research Institute.”
“We are trying to increase the number of knowledge-based companies stationed at the research institute up to 90,” Omidvar added.
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