Increasing the Biodegradability and Environmental Compatibility of Plastic Materials

拟建的研究人员网络由来自卡尔加里大学的3名学者组成，他们在配体的化学合成、有机金属配合物、碳氢化合物功能化和生物降解方面拥有所有必要的专业知识。NOVA Chemicals是一家主要的聚乙烯制造商，在加拿大设有多个工厂。在NOVA Chemicals的支持下，这个研究人员网络将致力于解决塑料材料使用带来的两个环境挑战。通过将这个主要的商业合作伙伴纳入团队，NOVA化学公司在将新发现融入实践方面具有独特的优势。这一伙伴关系的目标是解决减少塑料材料对环境影响方面的两个挑战：1)我们将努力开发聚合所需的不含氟化碳氢化合物的新型共催化剂；2)我们将开发催化方法，以创造允许氧化和微生物降解塑料废物的技术。这项工作的潜在成果是开发符合严格要求的无氟有机材料，这些材料通常被归类为多氟烷基物质（PFAS）。除了建立减少进入垃圾填埋场的塑料垃圾数量的过程外，开发聚乙烯的功能化和降解过程也将是朝着再利用这些材料作为原料和再循环成其他有用的化学中间体迈出的重要一步。这项拟议研究的潜在影响是提供低成本、轻质塑料材料的好处，同时继续提高聚乙烯材料的生物降解性和环境相容性。该提案通常被称为塑料的“循环经济”，将有助于推动聚乙烯工业从环境中去除潜在有害的含氟材料，并将废物回收/降解为增值材料。

The proposed network of researchers is composed of 3 academics from the University of Calgary who have all of the necessary expertise in chemical synthesis of ligands, organometallic complexes, C-H functionalization, and biodegradation. With the support NOVA Chemicals, a major polyethylene manufacturer with multiple sites located in Canada, this network of researchers will work to address two of the environmental challenges with the use of plastic materials. By integrating this major commercial partner into the team, NOVA Chemicals is uniquely positioned to integrate new discoveries into practice. The goals of this partnership are to address two of the challenges in reducing the environmental impact of plastic materials: 1) we will work to develop novel co-catalysts required for polymerization that do not contain fluorinated hydrocarbons, and 2) we will develop catalytic methods required to create the technology allowing the oxidation and microbial degradation of plastic waste. The potential outcomes of this work are the development of organofluorine-free materials that align with strict requirements frequently classified as polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS). In addition to establishing a process for reducing the amount of plastic waste going to landfills, developing functionalization and degradation processes on polyethylene would also be a significant step toward reusing these materials as feedstocks and recycled into other useful chemical intermediates. The potential impact of this proposed research is to provide the benefits of low-cost, light weight plastic materials while continuing to increase the biodegradability and environmental compatibility of polyethylene materials. Frequently referred to as the "circular economy" of plastics, this proposal will help move the polyethylene industry toward removing potentially harmful fluorinated materials from the environment and recycling/degrading waste into value-added materials.