Recently news regarding finding plastic bits in The Marina Trench got a lot of people worried.
The idea that plastic has polluted even the deepest part of the ocean is horrific.
But a team of scientists at the University of Chester discovered a ‘world first’ method in partnership with PowerHouse Energy.
This method will turn unrecyclable plastic like food packaging into fuel that could be used as a source of power for cars, in the form of hydrogen, and homes, in the form of electricity.
And the best part is that it would not leave any residue behind. Unsorted and unwashed plastic will be cut into two-inch long strips and then melted in a 1000°C furnace.
The gases that will be produced will be converted into energy while electricity will be its by-product
The potentiality of this patented company’s innovation can not only power its 54-acre plant in Ellesmere Port in Cheshire, but also 7,000 houses in a day along with 7,000 hydrogen-fueled cars in the U.K., every two weeks.
According to Professor Joe Howe, the Executive Director at the Thornton Energy Research Institute in the University of Chester, the technology will transform all types of plastic into high quality, low carbon hydrogen syngas.
The method was being tested via a prototype demonstrator at the University for two years. An identical version with a bigger furnace is set to build in the next spring at the Protos plant in Thornton Science Park, Ellesmere Port.
Following that, the efficient conversion system will be rolled out in Asia, which produces 90% of the world’s ocean plastic.
The deputy chairman of Waste2Tricity, which holds the license to develop this technology in Japan, Korea, UK, China and South Asia, Howard White, said that cleaning up the oceans may be good, but plastic must be stopped from entering the ecosystem.
He added the team at the University will soon be ready to roll out the technology on a large scale that will eliminate large quantities of ocean plastic and make low carbon dioxide hydrogen at low costs. Seems like good news is on the way.
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