One-Pot Conversion of Polyethylene Terephthalate into 1,4-Cyclohexanedicarboxylic Acid without External H<sub>2</sub>
Exploring the atom-economic transformation strategy for polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the most staple polyester material, can provide more approaches for the upcycling of plastic waste. Herein, we propose a one-pot process to convert PET into 1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid (CHDA) via the hydrogenation of terephthalic acid (TPA) by utilizing hydrogen stored in ethylene glycol (EG). The tandem process involving PET depolymerization, EG–H2O reforming, and TPA hydrogenation achieved high yields of CHDA (>90%) under optimized conditions. The employment of alkaline solution and combination of commercial Ru/C and Pd/C catalysts played critical roles in optimizing the reaction temperature and gaseous components so as to facilitate a one-pot reaction with enhanced hydrogen utilization. This method provides a feasible pathway for upcycling polyester waste, enabling high-selectivity product formation through efficient hydrogen utilization in a one-pot process.
Authors
- Xuan Liang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-7193-5634)
- Haoyu Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4110-4685)
- Meng Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3380-3534)
- Zhenbo Guo
- Ding Ma (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3341-2998)
- Meiqi Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3309-8345)
Institutions
- Peking University (CN)
- Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences (CN)
- Engineering (Italy) (IT)
- Institute of Molecular Medicine (IN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- ACS Catalysis
- Published
- 2025-04-03
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acscatal.4c07701
- Citations
- 13
- Primary Topic
- Carbon dioxide utilization in catalysis
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 9.16
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- China National Petroleum Corporation
- Beijing Municipal Natural Science Foundation
- National Key Research and Development Program of China