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1. Ars Technica (arstechnica@mastodon.social)'s status on Saturday, 21-Sep-2024 20:34:29 JST Ars Technica

   Vaporizing plastics recycles them into nothing but gas

   Polypropylene and polyethylene can be broken down simultaneously.

   https://arstechnica.com/science/2024/09/vaporizing-plastics-recycles-them-into-nothing-but-gas/?utm_brand=arstechnica&utm_social-type=owned&utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social

   • Excessive Minimalism (excess@mastodon.social)'s status on Saturday, 21-Sep-2024 21:59:20 JST Excessive Minimalism

     in reply to

     @arstechnica
     "Another test involved introducing different plastics, such as PET and PVC, to polypropylene and polyethylene to see if that would make a difference. These did lower the yield significantly. If this approach is going to be successful, then all but the slightest traces of contaminants will have to be removed from polypropylene and polyethylene products before they are recycled."

     So it's as impractical as every other recycling method but also this one uses a lot more energy?

     🤔

   • Avarna 💫 (avarna@mastodon.social)'s status on Saturday, 21-Sep-2024 22:03:20 JST Avarna 💫

     in reply to

     @arstechnica … what gas?

   • GrowingForJustice (growingforjustice@mastodon.social)'s status on Sunday, 22-Sep-2024 00:29:13 JST GrowingForJustice

     in reply to

     @arstechnica what escapes into the atmosphere?

   • Daniel Marks (profdc9@mastodon.social)'s status on Sunday, 22-Sep-2024 01:36:44 JST Daniel Marks

     in reply to

     @arstechnica If there is a plentiful energy source, I think a lot of garbage will be processed using pyrolysis (heating to high temperatures without oxygen) to produce gases than can be used to synthesize new materials, like methane, ethylene, and ammonia.

   • Eye (grb090423@mastodon.social)'s status on Sunday, 22-Sep-2024 01:58:53 JST Eye

     in reply to

     @arstechnica

     How about just stop producing plastics unless it's for medical use.

   • Simon Forman (carapace@mastodon.social)'s status on Sunday, 22-Sep-2024 02:41:20 JST Simon Forman

     in reply to

     @arstechnica This is a solved problem. We just need to get on with it.

     > Molten salt oxidation is a non-flame, thermal process that destroys all organic materials while simultaneously retaining inorganic and hazardous components in the melt. It is used as either hazardous waste treatment or energy harvesting...

     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molten_salt_oxidation