In situ Characterization of Catalyzed Autogenic Pressure Carbonization of Plastic Waste

Catalyzed autogenic pressure carbonization (APC) is a safe treatment for upcycling non-recyclable single-use plastic into anodes for alkali-ion batteries. The carbonization mechanism of plastic waste treated by catalyzed APC has been scarcely explored and no reports are available concerning the wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) technique. It has been shown that the catalyzed APC of polyethylene bags and polystyrene cups leads to paramagnetic, conducting pure carbon microspheres with various morphologies and compositions. In this project, we aim to study in situ the real-time carbonization of common plastic waste (e.g., cigarette filters) to highlight differences in phase, composition, interlayer spacing, porosity, defectivity, and microscopic texture before, during, and after the thermal conversion, and to clarify the mechanism as a function of plastic type, carbonization temperature and residence time using the WAXS technique and coupling it with the pair distribution function.