Mexican startup tackles plastic waste by converting it to fuel
Plants are the primary method of converting sunlight into other forms, including gasoline, diesel, and other fuels.
Only about 9% of the world's plastics are recycled. Petgas has a concept that instead of letting discarded plastic turn into waste, it can be transformed into a valuable fuel resource.
Petgas developed a machine in the port city of Boca del Rio that uses pyrolysis, a thermodynamic process that heats plastics in the absence of oxygen, breaking it down into gasoline, diesel, kerosene, paraffin, and coke.
Carlos Parraguirre Diaz, the chief technology officer at Petgas, stated that within one week, the machine is capable of handling 1.5 tons of plastics and generating 356 gallons (1,350 liters) of fuel.
The process does require propane to start the burning process, but once the process is underway, the gas it generates is used to keep it going, as stated by the company. And using the fuel it produces does release carbon dioxide, but the company claims its overall impact is lower than that of comparable fuels because their fuel has lower sulfur content.
Parraguirre DÃaz stated that the machine demonstrates that "we can transform that (plastic) into a product that's useful and holds significant value in the global economy."
“It's as if we dug into the earth and found oil that our community can use instead of digging a landfill.”
In 2023, China was the largest exporter of plastic products, with Germany and the United States trailing behind as the second-largest exporters.
Many plastics are used for packaging. Every day, a staggering 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic waste end up in the world's oceans, rivers, and lakes.
The talks concluded in Busan, South Korea in December without an agreement being reached. This was intended to be the fifth and final round to secure the first legally binding treaty on plastics pollution, including in the oceans, by the end of 2024.
Petgas envisions a circular economy where plastic is no longer discarded as waste, but instead serves as a valuable resource for producing energy.
In order to accomplish this goal, the company has launched a series of plastic collection drives to remove plastic bottles and other plastic waste from the city's beaches. They're inviting people to bring their plastic waste to a designated drop-off point and receiving most of its material clean and shredded from a recycling facility.
Alexa Mendoza, a biologist focused on plastic contamination in the ocean who is unaffiliated with the project, mentioned that Petgas plan was a good idea, but ultimately just a temporary fix for a huge global issue.
“Putting a patch on it and saying 'it's fixed' isn't a viable solution, but it could be a starting point. With the guidance of experts, we could assess what adjustments are needed to prevent it from becoming a source of harm.”
Currently, Petgas donates the fuel it produces to the local fire department and food delivery services.
"The future is about scaling up production to a point where it can make a real impact." - Parraguirre DÃaz.
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https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
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