(700a) Recycling Plastic Waste into High-Valued Engineering Aerogel Materials

In 2017, Singapore generated 7.7 million tonnes of waste, a sevenfold increase from 40 years ago and enough to fill 15,000 Olympic-size swimming pools. Plastic was the largest category of waste generated but only 4% were recycled, the lowest of all waste categories. This
seemingly hard-to-recycle material has been widely featured as a hazard to the environment, polluting oceans and clogging up landfills. Plastic releases toxic pollutants when burnt and can take even thousands of years to break down. Currently, the recycling of plastic waste is mainly for low-value applications and simple uses, which results in a lack of appreciation for the value of this raw material as recyclable waste. The previous lack of possible solutions could also have contributed to public perception that there isn't more they can do to help alleviate the situation.

A new ground breaking technology was created using the freeze-drying process, which makes use of environmental waste to solve environmental problems, by turning plastic waste into novel, high-value aerogel materials. Aerogel is a class of porous material that exhibits an uncanny array of extreme materials properties. Due to its highly insulating and absorbent qualities, the material has a wide range of applications including, but not limited to, heat and sound insulation, high-temperature garments, carbon dioxide and toxic gas filtering, oil spill cleaning and medical devices. At the end of their useful life, the used aerogel can be safely grounded into fine particles and discarded.

This new technology is able to reduce the duration of developing aerogel to less than a day - 20 times faster than the current commercial processes. The method also uses 70% less energy and results in reduced polluting emissions in the air and water. The current project aims to take the research further and help this revolutionary technology gain more international recognition, build awareness and generate interest in how much impact such a novel environmental solution and engineering application will bring about.

This breakthrough could be the solution to the world's plastic waste problem. One of the least recyclable wastes that usually ends up polluting oceans and clogging up landfills could potentially be turned into a life-saving material for fire insulation and cleaning up oil spills. It is important to ensure that such a technology is made publicly aware and translational in facilitating waste management, so that the impact can be further amplified.