U.S. Invents Methods for Making Plastics from Oranges

A research group at Cornell University in the US invented a "sweet" and environmentally friendly process - producing plastics from citrus plants such as oranges and carbon dioxide. Jeffrey Kotz, a professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Conor University, and his graduate students in the latest issue of the American Chemical Society, reported on the use of some of their synthetic catalysts to synthesize polymers of limonene and carbon dioxide into polymers. method.

Limonene is a carbonaceous compound found in more than three hundred plants. Orange peel contains 95% more lemon olein. It has a variety of uses in the industry, for example as a fragrance for household cleaners. Synthetic plastics require two raw materials. One is the olein formed by oxidation and the other is carbon dioxide. With the latter's massive use of fossil energy, the latter has steadily increased its atmospheric concentration over the past one-and-a-half centuries and has become a greenhouse gas that harms the natural environment. Through the catalyst, Coates synthesized these two kinds of raw materials into synthetic carbonized lemon olein polymer, which has many characteristics of polystyrene. Polystyrene is the main component of various plastic products and is currently mainly produced through petroleum.

Kautz explained: "The catalysts can be used repeatedly in the compounding process. Without them, limonene oxide and carbon dioxide will not be automatized.

At present, both the polyester used in the garment industry and the plastic products used in food packaging and electronic products are all obtained through petrochemicals. My job is to produce quality plastics from sources that are stable, abundant, renewable, and inexpensive without using petroleum. Carbon dioxide used in production will help reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide levels and mitigate the greenhouse effect. ”

The study was sponsored by the Pekkad Foundation, the National Science Foundation, and the Conrad University Materials Research and Biotechnology Research Center.