http://english.cas.cn/newsroom/research_news/chem/202506/t20250626_1046291.shtml
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09088-7
Prof. XU Shutao from the CAS Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP), in collaboration with a team from Peking University, has developed a solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) technology to enhance the separation and recycling processes of real-life plastic waste mixtures. Solid-state NMR spectroscopy has the advantage of directly analyzing insoluble samples, making it a powerful tool for studying complex polymer systems. In this study, the researchers utilized an innovative solid-state NMR method:1H-13C Frequency Switched Lee Goldburg Heteronuclear Correlation (FSLG-HETCOR) NMR.
By optimizing key parameters such as spinning rate, contact time, and homonuclear decoupling field strength, and using 13C-labeled tyrosine hydrochloride as a reference, the researchers obtained high-resolution “fingerprint” spectra of individual plastic components from an eight-plastic mixture containing polystyrene (PS), polylactic acid (PLA), polyurethane (PU), polycarbonate (PC), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene (PE), and polypropylene (PP).
From a 20-g mixture of real-life plastics, including polystyrene foam, a polylactic acid straw, a polyurethane tube, a polycarbonate mask, a polyvinyl chloride bag, a polyethylene terephthalate bottle, a polyethylene dropper and a polypropylene bottle, the researchers obtained more than 8 separate chemicals: 1.3 g of benzoic acid, 0.5 g of plasticizer, 0.7 g of alanine, 0.7 g of lactic acid, 1.4 g of aromatic amine salt, 2.1 g of bisphenol A, 2.0 g of terephthalic acid and 3.5 g of C3–C6 alkanes.
