This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) under the Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (TIP) program (CFDA 47.084) provides $274,991 to Molten Materials LLC to develop a sustainable solution for upcycling waste plastics into high-value thermoplastic elastomers. The project aims to transform non-recyclable plastic waste into materials suitable for infrastructure applications such as road construction, reducing the environmental impact of plastic waste while enhancing the durability and longevity of pavements. The key innovation is the use of reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization to produce high-performance elastomers from depolymerized plastic oligomers, allowing for precise control over the properties of the recycled materials. The research will explore optimal conditions for depolymerizing waste plastics and polymerizing them into elastomers, with the goals of demonstrating feasibility, optimizing material properties, and validating the effectiveness of the produced elastomers for pavement use. This project has the potential to revolutionize plastic recycling and contribute to the development of sustainable infrastructure materials.
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