Transforming Cl-Containing Waste Plastics into Carbon Resource for Steelmaking: Theoretical Insight

The accumulation
of waste plastics poses a significant
environmental
challenge, leading to persistent pollution in terrestrial and aquatic
ecosystems. A practical approach to address this issue involves the
transformation of postconsumer waste plastics into industrially valuable
products. This study focuses on an example of harnessing the carbon
content in these polymers for carbon-demanding industrial processes,
thereby reducing waste plastics from the environment and alleviating
the demand for mined carbon resources. Employing quantum simulations,
we examine the viability of polychloroprene as a carburizing agent
in the steelmaking process. Our simulations reveal that polychloroprene
exhibits excellent carbon diffusivity in molten iron, with a theoretical
diffusion coefficient of 8.983 × 10–5cm2 s–1. This value competes favorably with
that of metallurgical coke and surpasses the carbon diffusivity of
other polymers, such as polycarbonate, polyurethane, and polysulfide.
Additionally, our findings demonstrate that the chlorine content in
polychloroprene does not permeate into molten iron but instead remains
confined to the molten iron and slag interface.