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Carbon Resource Recovery from Plastics via Deep-Sea-Inspired Chemistry

2024.10.07
Shinshu University
Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology

The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) has successfully recovered carbon resources from plastics employing deep-sea-inspired chemistry. Shigeru Deguchi, Director of the Research Center for Bioscience and Nanoscience at JAMSTEC, in collaboration with Yasuhiro Kohsaka and Mitsumasa Osada of Shinshu University, has recovered phenol—a precursor for various chemicals—with high purity and high yield by simply treating a plastic synthesized from aspirin in water at elevated temperature and pressure for five minutes.

The Deep-Sea Nanoscience Research Group at the Research Center for Bioscience and Nanoscience, JAMSTEC, has been conducting research and development on deep-sea-inspired chemistry, drawing inspiration from the extreme environments of the deep sea and the unique survival strategies of deep-sea organisms. As part of this effort, the group has been collaborating with a team at Shinshu University since 2016 on a novel plastic synthesis process inspired by the dynamic thermal environment of deep-sea hydrothermal vents. This achievement is the culmination of research aimed at applying this technology to the recycling of plastic resources, supported by the Japan Prize Foundation since 2023.

Figure

Figure: Carbon resource recovery from vinyl polymer synthesized from aspirin.

For further details, please visit the Shinshu University website.

For press release

Press Office, Marine Science and Technology Strategy Department