Upcycling of waste polyesters for the development of a circular economy.

The rapidly increasing production and widespread application of plastics have brought convenience to our lives, but they have consumed a huge amount of nonrenewable fossil energy, leading to additional CO emissions and generation of an enormous amount of plastic waste (also called white pollution). Chemical recycling and upcycling of waste plastic products (also called waste plastic refineries) into recycled monomers and/or valuable chemicals can decrease the dependence on fossil energy and/or reduce the emission of CO, enabling the full utilization of carbon resources for the development of a circular economy. Polyesters, a vital class of plastics, are ideal feedstocks for chemical recycling due to the easily depolymerizable ester bonds compared to polyolefins.

Hydrogenation of the benzene rings in PET degraded chemicals over meso-HZSM-5 supported Ru catalyst.

Chemical upcycling of waste polyethylene terephthalate (PET) to value-added products can reduce the emission of CO, microplastics and toxic chemicals. In this work, mesoporous H-type Zeolite Socony Mobil-5 (HZSM-5) supported Ru catalyst (Ru/m-HZSM-5) was synthesized and tested in the hydrogenation of PET degraded chemicals (bis(2-hydroxyethyl) terephthalate, dimethyl terephthalate, diethyl terephthalate, and terephthalic acid). Characterizations disclosed that Ru/m-HZSM-5 catalyst possesses mesopores (a dominant channel of 5.

Changing the spin disorder of two-dimensional magnetic CrTiCT to long-range order through noble metal adhesion.

To enhance the use of Cr2TiC2Tx MXene in spin electronics, it is essential to transform its spin-disordered state into a long-range ordered spin state. In this study, first-principles calculations show that Rh layers adhered to the CrTiCT surfaces can transform its spin disordered state into a long-range spin order by donating electrons to the O terminations, resulting in CrTiCT becoming a single-layer A-type antiferromagnet. As the proportion of F termination increases from 0 to 100%, the exchange coupling constant J of the compound escalates from 0.

Recent advances in simultaneous removal of NOx and VOCs over bifunctional catalysts via SCR and oxidation reaction.

NOx and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are two major pollutants commonly found in industrial flue gas emissions. They play a significant role as precursors in the formation of ozone and fine particulate matter (PM). The simultaneous removal of NOx and VOCs is crucial in addressing ozone and PM pollution.

Montmorillonite-Enveloped Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework as a Nourishing Oral Nano-Platform for Gastrointestinal Drug Delivery.

Oral administration of medicine faces physiological constraints imposed by the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and simultaneously causes irritation to GI mucosa, which motivates us to pursue the innovation of a GI drug delivery system. Inspired by the mucosa-nutrient functions of Zinc element and smectite clay, a montmorillonite (MMT)-enveloped zeolitic imidazolate framework (M-ZIF-8) is developed in a successive one-pot fabrication of ZIF-8 encapsulated medicine, and followed MMT coating to yield a core-shell nanoplatform for GI drug delivery. ZIF-8 encapsulated medicines can maintain their intrinsic structure, and MMT layer potentiates mucous-adhesion and optimizes medicine release.