Conversion of Waste to Catalysts and other Value-added Products

“如果废物不是呢？“是几家公司用来挑战我们对不同工艺产生的副产品的看法的口号。即使一个过程是100%的效率，所有的产品随着时间的推移而恶化，因此仍然会产生废物。理想情况下，副产品和废弃产品可以在相同或不同的过程中重复使用（所谓的“循环经济”）。废弃物代表着巨大的资源，这些资源廉价、易得且丰富。然而，由于废物含有许多不同的成分，这些材料通常不能直接取代现有工艺中的纯原料。工艺和废料必须仔细匹配，以考虑整个系统中的成分、反应和可能的相互作用。即使经过仔细的匹配，废料在重新使用之前也可能需要一些处理。 在我的研究小组中，我们已经开发出从废料中制备催化剂的新方法。催化剂是提高反应速率并选择性地产生所需产物的物质。在90%的工业过程中，催化剂不仅可以从数百万吨可用的废物中制备，还可以将这些废物转化为增值产品。这份提案描述了我的计划，重新利用两种主要由碳制成的废物-从重油和沥青加工中产生的石油焦，以及从回收轮胎中产生的炭黑。石油焦将被转化为i。用于将废塑料转化为碳纤维和纳米管的固体酸催化剂，和ii.硫化催化剂，可用于部分升级沥青，以增加其价值，使其更容易运输。炭黑将被添加到水泥中，以催化水化反应，并最终提高混凝土的质量。后一种应用是我们对碳的研究的自然延伸。我们将继续探索碳基废料的合适应用。 通过这项工作，博士后研究员，研究生和本科生将接受培训，通过准备，表征和测试不同的催化剂进行彻底，有影响力的研究。团队合作和协作将促进沟通，并促进以多种方式处理不同的问题。这些都是工业所需的技能，以保持强大和创新的劳动力，并刺激加拿大经济。

"What if waste wasn't?" is a slogan used by several companies to challenge our view of the byproducts from different processes. Even if a process was 100% efficient, all products deteriorate over time and so waste would still be generated. Ideally the byproducts and spent products could be reused in the same or a different process (the so called "circular economy"). Waste materials represent tremendous resources that are inexpensive, accessible, and abundant. Because waste contains many different components, however, the materials generally cannot directly replace pure feedstocks in existing processes. The process and the waste material must be carefully matched to consider the compositions, reactions, and possible interactions throughout the entire system. Even after careful matching, the waste materials may require some processing before being reused. In my research group, we have developed new methods to prepare catalysts from waste materials. Catalysts are substances that increase reaction rates and selectively produce desired products. Used in 90% of all industrial processes, catalysts cannot only be prepared from the millions of tonnes of waste that are available but also convert this waste to value-added products. This proposal describes my plans to reuse two waste products that are primarily made of carbon - petroleum coke produced from heavy oil and bitumen processing, and carbon black from recycled tires. The petroleum coke will be converted to i. solid acid catalysts for the conversion of waste plastics to carbon fibres and nanotubes, and ii. sulfide catalysts that can be used to partially upgrade bitumen to increase its value and make it more easily transportable. The carbon black will be added to cement to catalyze the hydration reactions and ultimately improve the qualities of the concrete. The latter application is a natural extension of our work with carbon. We will continue to explore applications for which carbon-based waste materials are suitable. Through this work, post-doctoral fellows, graduate students, and undergraduate students will be trained to conduct thorough, impactful research by preparing, characterizing, and testing different catalysts. Teamwork and collaboration will promote communication and facilitate diverse ways of approaching different problems. These are all skills that are required by industry to maintain a strong and innovative workforce and stimulate the Canadian economy.