TY - JOUR
T1 - Upcycling polyolefins to methane-free liquid fuel by a Ru1-ZrO2 catalyst
AU - Yan, Jicong
AU - Li, Guanna
AU - Lei, Zhanwu
AU - Yuan, Xiaolu
AU - Li, Junting
AU - Wang, Xiaoru
AU - Wang, Bo
AU - Tian, Fuping
AU - Hu, Tao
AU - Huang, Lei
AU - Ding, Yujia
AU - Xi, Xiaoke
AU - Zhu, Feng
AU - Zhang, Shuo
AU - Li, Jiong
AU - Chen, Yu
AU - Cao, Ruiguo
AU - Wang, Xiang
PY - 2025/12
Y1 - 2025/12
N2 - Upcycling waste plastics into liquid fuels presents significant potential for advancing the circular economy but is hindered by poor selectivity and low-value methane byproduct formation. In this work, we report that atomic Ru-doped ZrO2 can selectively convert 100 grams of post-consumer polyethylene and polypropylene, yielding 85 mL of liquid in a solvent-free hydrocracking. The liquid (C5-C20) comprises ~70% jet-fuel-ranged branched hydrocarbons (C8-C16), while the gas product is liquefied-petroleum-gas (C3-C6) without methane and ethane. We found that the atomic Ru dopant in the Ru-O-Zr moiety functionalizes its neighboring O atom, originally inert, to create a Brønsted acid site. This Brønsted acid site, rather than the atomic Ru dopant itself, selectively governs the internal C−C bond cleavage in polyolefins through a carbonium ion mechanism, thereby enhancing the yield of jet-fuel-ranged hydrocarbons and suppressing methane formation. This oxide modulation strategy provides a paradigm shift in catalyst design for hydrocracking waste plastics and holds potential for a broad spectrum of applications.
AB - Upcycling waste plastics into liquid fuels presents significant potential for advancing the circular economy but is hindered by poor selectivity and low-value methane byproduct formation. In this work, we report that atomic Ru-doped ZrO2 can selectively convert 100 grams of post-consumer polyethylene and polypropylene, yielding 85 mL of liquid in a solvent-free hydrocracking. The liquid (C5-C20) comprises ~70% jet-fuel-ranged branched hydrocarbons (C8-C16), while the gas product is liquefied-petroleum-gas (C3-C6) without methane and ethane. We found that the atomic Ru dopant in the Ru-O-Zr moiety functionalizes its neighboring O atom, originally inert, to create a Brønsted acid site. This Brønsted acid site, rather than the atomic Ru dopant itself, selectively governs the internal C−C bond cleavage in polyolefins through a carbonium ion mechanism, thereby enhancing the yield of jet-fuel-ranged hydrocarbons and suppressing methane formation. This oxide modulation strategy provides a paradigm shift in catalyst design for hydrocracking waste plastics and holds potential for a broad spectrum of applications.
U2 - 10.1038/s41467-025-57998-x
DO - 10.1038/s41467-025-57998-x
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:105000520021
SN - 2041-1723
VL - 16
JO - Nature Communications
JF - Nature Communications
IS - 1
M1 - 2800
ER -
