Toward carbon neutrality: Selective conversion of waste plastics into value-added chemicals

Summary

Due to the ever-expanding uses of plastics and shortage of rational waste management, plastic wastes have accumulated in the global environment and reached 6,300 million metric tons. Considering the large amount of CO₂ and microplastics (MPs) emissions throughout the cradle to grave of plastics, there has been a notable surge in interest regarding the utilization of these carbon-rich wastes as feedstocks for the reclamation of valuable chemicals. Here, state-of-the-art technologies of catalytic plastics conversion driven by heat, light, electricity, and enzyme toward various valuable chemicals are summarized. Selective C–H, C–O, and C–C bond transformations in the plastics conversion are highlighted, which will uncover the reaction pathway and optimize the product selectivity. Innovations in catalysts and catalytic systems for circumventing harsh conditions and constructing low-carbon recycling systems are also discussed. Finally, outlooks for the future development of selective plastics-to-chemicals conversion in contributing toward carbon neutrality and zero plastic wastes are proposed.