INS3-1392
Thermodynamic Study on PET Methanolysis for Sustainable Upcycling Process Development
Topic
S3. Processing / Fabrications (Emerging Horizons in Polymer Processing and Fabrication)
When and Where
Oct 1, 2026
11:10 - 11:35
Room 104
Session Chairs
Hyomin LEE
Presenter(s)
Joung Sook Hong (Jeju National University)
Co-Author(s)
Abstract
To develop an effective and sustainable plastic upcycling process, each process component—namely alcohol, co-solvent, Lewis acid, and reaction conditions—of an alcohol-based reaction converting waste polyethylene terephthalate (PET) into terephthalic acid (TPA) and its precursors was comprehensively evaluated from a thermodynamic perspective. First, through an analysis based on Florey-Huggins interaction parameter (χ 1,2 
), we demonstrated the effect of co-solvents on the depolymerization process due to reduction of thermodynamic potential, and confirmed that the solubility of the Lewis acid source is important for efficient PET deconstruction. The thermodynamic reaction design enabled sustainable reaction optimization. In addition, further validation experiments determine methanol as the most effective option in tandem alcoholysis given its reduced steric hindrance and relatively higher nucleophilicity, whereas process optimization tests suggest the existence of an optimum methanol molar ratio (XMetOH) of 0.16 and operation at 50 ºC to realize TPA yields that exceed 90 % within 15 min across various pure and mixed PET feedstocks. The implementation of thermodynamic considerations and understanding of roles played by each component is found to boost the overall depolymerization process, and provides a unified avenue for optimizing and developing sustainable recycling processes for post-consumer plastic waste.
), we demonstrated the effect of co-solvents on the depolymerization process due to reduction of thermodynamic potential, and confirmed that the solubility of the Lewis acid source is important for efficient PET deconstruction. The thermodynamic reaction design enabled sustainable reaction optimization. In addition, further validation experiments determine methanol as the most effective option in tandem alcoholysis given its reduced steric hindrance and relatively higher nucleophilicity, whereas process optimization tests suggest the existence of an optimum methanol molar ratio (XMetOH) of 0.16 and operation at 50 ºC to realize TPA yields that exceed 90 % within 15 min across various pure and mixed PET feedstocks. The implementation of thermodynamic considerations and understanding of roles played by each component is found to boost the overall depolymerization process, and provides a unified avenue for optimizing and developing sustainable recycling processes for post-consumer plastic waste. 
