Used PPE could be turned into biofuel, research shows

Plastic from used personal protective equipment (PPE) can be turned into biofuels - according to a new study, published in the peer-reviewed Taylor & Francis journal Biofuels.

This would prevent it from ending up in landfill or oceans, where they take decades to decompose.

Experts from The University of Petroleum and Energy Studies have shown show how disposed of PPE can be converted into fuel using pyrolysis. This a chemical process for breaking down plastic at high temperature - between 300-400 degree centigrade for an hour - without oxygen.

Co-author of the study Dr Bhawna Yadav Lamba says this process is among the most promising and sustainable methods of recycling compared with incineration and landfill.

"Pyrolysis is the most commonly used chemical method whose benefits include the ability to produce high quantities of bio-oil which is easily biodegradable," she states.

"There is always a need for alternative fuels or energy resources to meet our energy demands. The pyrolysis of plastics is one of the methods to mitigate our energy crisis."

She concludes: "The challenges of PPE waste management and increasing energy demand could be addressed simultaneously by the production of liquid fuel from PPE kits. The liquid fuel produced from plastics is clean and have fuel properties similar to fossil fuels."