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Transforming Waste Plastic Into $10/Barrel Fuel

Posted by samzenpus on from the mr.-fusion dept.

Mike writes "Today Washington DC-based company Envion opened a $5 million dollar facility that they claim will be able to efficiently transform plastic waste into a source of oil-like fuel. The technology uses infra-red energy to remove hydrocarbons from plastic without the use of a catalyst, transforming 82% of the original plastic material into fuel. According to Envion, the resulting fuel can then be blended with other components, providing a source for gasoline or diesel at as low as $10 per barrel."

3 of 315 comments (clear)

  1. Can we put one of these factories on a ship? by reezle · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I've been thinking of something like this factory, on a boat equipped with fishing nets processing the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
    Wonder how much oil is in there?

  2. I also saw this with great skepticism, but... by spinach+and+eggs · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ...the key part of TFA for me was:

    We'll find out soon whether Envion's process works as well as the company claims --- the $5 million inaugural plastic-to-fuel plant opened today in Washington, DC, and an undisclosed company has already agreed to buy Envion's product to blend into vehicle fuel.

    So yes, we'll find out soon, I guess.

  3. Re:Pyrolysis by Smidge204 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Flash point isn't a problem in an inert atmosphere.

    Various technologies have been around to do this; the problem has always been scale and water consumption.

    Hope these guys get somewhere with the process, and I hope the process is indifferent to the type of plastic involved. The wide variety of plastics used has always been a major problem for plastics recycling.

    Of course, you're still left with a nasty sludge - plastic contains non-hydrocarbon chemicals - and this is not a replacement for petroleum since the plastics were made from petroleum to begin with. But! This may make "mining" landfills a more interesting proposition... now you can get methane, various metals (in relatively pure form) AND liquid fuels from old landfills.
    =Smidge=