Technology
Using waste plastic to produce a combination of hydrogen and graphene could make it profitable and greener to generate hydrogen as a fuel
By Alex Wilkins
Polyethylene, used in plastic bags, can be converted into hydrogen and graphene
Jenya Smyk/Shutterstock
A new way to make hydrogen from waste plastic also produces graphene as a byproduct. If the graphene is sold at its current market price, it could actually become profitable to generate hydrogen as a clean fuel.
The most common way to produce hydrogen involves reacting steam with methane sourced from natural gas. However, this process releases large quantities of carbon dioxide. There are carbon-free ways to make hydrogen, but they require large amounts of electricity and can…
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