* . *
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact
Sunday, October 5, 2025
Earth-News
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Why Taylor Swift Name-Dropped Elizabeth Taylor in Her New Album – Yahoo

    Here’s Why Taylor Swift Dropped Elizabeth Taylor’s Name in Her New Album

    Al Roker Gives Olivia Dean an Unexpected ‘New Job’ on the ‘Today’ Show – Yahoo

    Al Roker Shocks Olivia Dean with an Exciting New Role on the ‘Today’ Show

    Books about the arts and some haunts for a Denton October – Denton Record-Chronicle

    Uncover Artistic Treasures and Spooky Adventures to Experience in Denton This October

    Taylor Swift Releases New Album The Life of a Showgirl : Listen and Read the Full Credits – Yahoo

    Taylor Swift Releases New Album The Life of a Showgirl : Listen and Read the Full Credits – Yahoo

    Toni Braxton Is Turning Her Biggest Hits Into Lifetime Movies – Yahoo

    Toni Braxton Is Turning Her Biggest Hits Into Lifetime Movies – Yahoo

    Major airline to offer new in-flight entertainment options for passengers – PennLive.com

    Major airline to offer new in-flight entertainment options for passengers – PennLive.com

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    What the Recent Price Surge Means for Figure Technology Solutions After SEC Settlement – Yahoo Finance

    What the Recent Price Surge Reveals About Figure Technology Solutions Following SEC Settlement

    MAC Brings iPad Technology to Football Sidelines Across All 13 Member Schools – Sports Video Group

    MAC Brings iPad Technology to Football Sidelines Across All 13 Member Schools – Sports Video Group

    Technology Is Becoming More Important Than Humans In CX – No Jitter

    Technology Is Becoming More Important Than Humans In CX – No Jitter

    A Tech Expo Shows What China Can Make, but Not Who’ll Buy It All – The New York Times

    Inside China’s Tech Expo: Cutting-Edge Innovations Face Uncertain Demand

    Steampunk Metal Oval Technology Sense Sunglasses Personality Handmade Chain Multicolor Sunglasses UV400 – The San Joaquin Valley Sun

    Steampunk Metal Oval Sunglasses with Handmade Multicolor Chain – Bold UV400 Protection and Unique Style

    STELLA Automotive AI Appoints Fred Seidelman as Chief Technology Officer – Yahoo Finance

    STELLA Automotive AI Appoints Fred Seidelman as New Chief Technology Officer

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Why Taylor Swift Name-Dropped Elizabeth Taylor in Her New Album – Yahoo

    Here’s Why Taylor Swift Dropped Elizabeth Taylor’s Name in Her New Album

    Al Roker Gives Olivia Dean an Unexpected ‘New Job’ on the ‘Today’ Show – Yahoo

    Al Roker Shocks Olivia Dean with an Exciting New Role on the ‘Today’ Show

    Books about the arts and some haunts for a Denton October – Denton Record-Chronicle

    Uncover Artistic Treasures and Spooky Adventures to Experience in Denton This October

    Taylor Swift Releases New Album The Life of a Showgirl : Listen and Read the Full Credits – Yahoo

    Taylor Swift Releases New Album The Life of a Showgirl : Listen and Read the Full Credits – Yahoo

    Toni Braxton Is Turning Her Biggest Hits Into Lifetime Movies – Yahoo

    Toni Braxton Is Turning Her Biggest Hits Into Lifetime Movies – Yahoo

    Major airline to offer new in-flight entertainment options for passengers – PennLive.com

    Major airline to offer new in-flight entertainment options for passengers – PennLive.com

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    What the Recent Price Surge Means for Figure Technology Solutions After SEC Settlement – Yahoo Finance

    What the Recent Price Surge Reveals About Figure Technology Solutions Following SEC Settlement

    MAC Brings iPad Technology to Football Sidelines Across All 13 Member Schools – Sports Video Group

    MAC Brings iPad Technology to Football Sidelines Across All 13 Member Schools – Sports Video Group

    Technology Is Becoming More Important Than Humans In CX – No Jitter

    Technology Is Becoming More Important Than Humans In CX – No Jitter

    A Tech Expo Shows What China Can Make, but Not Who’ll Buy It All – The New York Times

    Inside China’s Tech Expo: Cutting-Edge Innovations Face Uncertain Demand

    Steampunk Metal Oval Technology Sense Sunglasses Personality Handmade Chain Multicolor Sunglasses UV400 – The San Joaquin Valley Sun

    Steampunk Metal Oval Sunglasses with Handmade Multicolor Chain – Bold UV400 Protection and Unique Style

    STELLA Automotive AI Appoints Fred Seidelman as Chief Technology Officer – Yahoo Finance

    STELLA Automotive AI Appoints Fred Seidelman as New Chief Technology Officer

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
Earth-News
No Result
View All Result
Home Science

Hartshorn salt and ‘baking’ solves a serious environmental problem

August 7, 2023
in Science
Hartshorn salt and ‘baking’ solves a serious environmental problem
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Polyester is the second most used textile in the world and an environmental menace, especially because most of it never gets recycled. The fabric, a blend of plastic and cotton, has been difficult for the industry to separate and therefore recycle. Now, a group of young chemists from the University of Copenhagen has invented a green and surprisingly simple solution using a single household ingredient.

From clothes to sofas to curtains, polyester dominates our everyday lives, with a staggering 60 million tons of this popular fabric produced annually. However, polyester production takes a toll on the climate and the environment, as only a mere 15% of it is recycled, while the rest ends up in landfills or incinerated, being responsible of more carbon emission.

Recycling polyester poses a significant challenge, particularly in separating the plastic and cotton fibers that the blend fabric is made of without losing either of them in the process. Conventional recycling methods often prioritize preserving the plastic component, resulting in a loss of cotton fibers. Moreover, these methods are costly, complex, and generate metal waste due to the use of metal catalysts, which can be cytotoxic and contaminate the process.

In a remarkable breakthrough, a group of young chemists has unveiled a surprisingly simple solution to this pressing problem, potentially revolutionizing the sustainability of the textile industry.

“The textile industry urgently requires a better solution to handle blended fabrics like polyester/cotton. Currently, there are very few practical methods capable of recycling both cotton and plastic — it’s typically an either-or scenario. However, with our newly discovered technique, we can depolymerize polyester into its monomers while simultaneously recovering cotton on a scale of hundreds of grams, using an incredibly straightforward and environmentally friendly approach. This traceless catalytic methodology could be the game-changer,” explains postdoc Yang Yang of the Jiwoong Lee group at the University of Copenhagen’s Department of Chemistry, who serves as the lead author of the scientific research article.

Hartshorn salt and 24 hours in the ‘oven’

The new method requires no special equipment — just heat, a non-toxic solvent, and an ordinary household ingredient.

“For example, we can take a polyester dress, cut it up into small pieces and place it in a container. Then, add a bit of mild solvent, and thereafter hartshorn salt, which many people know as a leavening agent in baked goods. We then heat it all up to 160 degrees Celsius and leave it for 24 hours. The result is a liquid in which the plastic and cotton fibers settle into distinct layers. It’s a simple and cost-effective process,” explains Shriaya Sharma, a doctoral student of the Jiwoong Lee group at the Department of Chemistry and study co-author.

In the process, the hartshorn salt, also called ammonium bicarbonate, is broken down into ammonia, CO2 and water. The combination of ammonia and CO2 acts as a catalyst, triggering a selective depolymerization reaction that breaks down the polyester while preserving the cotton fibers. Although ammonia is toxic in isolation, when combined with CO2, it becomes both environmentally friendly and safe for use. Due to the mild nature of the chemicals involved, the cotton fibers remain intact and in excellent condition.

Previously, the same research group demonstrated that CO2 could serve as a catalyst for breaking down nylon, among other things, without leaving any trace. This discovery inspired them to explore the use of hartshorn salt. Nevertheless, the researchers were pleasantly surprised when their simple recipe yielded successful results.

“At first, we were excited to see it work so well on the PET bottles alone. Then, when we discovered that it worked on polyester fabric as well, we were just ecstatic. It was indescribable. That it was so simple to perform was nearly too good to be true,” says Carlo Di Bernardo, doctoral student and study co-author.

While the method has only been tested at the laboratory level thus far, the researchers point to its scalability and are now in contact with companies to test the method on an industrial scale.

“We’re hoping to commercialize this technology that harbors such great potential. Keeping this knowledge behind the walls of the university would be a huge waste,” concludes Yang Yang.

PET AND POLYESTER

PET is the most widely used type of plastic in the world. The production of PET, a plastic most familiar to us as bevarage bottles, amounts to 70 million tons annually and is growing every year. One third of global PET production is used to produce polyester and other synthetic textiles.

ALSO WORKS ON WASTE

The new recycling method based on hartshorn salt (ammonium bicarbonate) works on PET plastic alone, as well as on PET and cotton blended materials.

“If we throw dirty plastic waste in a container, we still get good quality cotton and plastic monomer out of it. This can even be a plastic bottle with juice residue still in it. We just put it in and begin the reaction. It still works,” says Shriaya Sharma.

>>> Read full article>>>
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source : Science Daily – https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/08/230804123723.htm

Tags: BakingHartshornscience
Previous Post

How the hospital pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii quickly adapts to new environmental conditions

Next Post

Continuous-flow manufacturing of essential antibiotic cefazolin: Flexible production while reducing costs

Watch the October 2025 Edition of the World Report – newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org

Watch the October 2025 Edition of the World Report – newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org

October 5, 2025
Shutdowns usually don’t do much economic damage, but there are reasons to worry this time – PBS

Why This Shutdown Could Hit the Economy Harder Than Usual

October 5, 2025
Why Taylor Swift Name-Dropped Elizabeth Taylor in Her New Album – Yahoo

Here’s Why Taylor Swift Dropped Elizabeth Taylor’s Name in Her New Album

October 5, 2025

Unleash Your Potential: Join the Franciscan Health Women’s Conference 2025!

October 5, 2025
Judge finds state illegally operating portion of Thruway on Seneca lands – Spectrum News

Judge finds state illegally operating portion of Thruway on Seneca lands – Spectrum News

October 5, 2025
Mitochondrial genomes of Middle Pleistocene horses from the open-air site complex of Schöningen – Nature

Mitochondrial genomes of Middle Pleistocene horses from the open-air site complex of Schöningen – Nature

October 4, 2025
Scientists just cracked the mystery of why cancer immunotherapy fails – ScienceDaily

Scientists just cracked the mystery of why cancer immunotherapy fails – ScienceDaily

October 4, 2025
Global earthquake detection and warning using Android phones – Science | AAAS

Global earthquake detection and warning using Android phones – Science | AAAS

October 4, 2025
What Oil Is Really In Chick-Fil-A’s Fryer? Turns Out, It Depends On What You Order – Yahoo

What Oil Does Chick-Fil-A Really Use in Their Fryers? The Surprising Truth Behind Your Order!

October 4, 2025
What the Recent Price Surge Means for Figure Technology Solutions After SEC Settlement – Yahoo Finance

What the Recent Price Surge Reveals About Figure Technology Solutions Following SEC Settlement

October 4, 2025

Categories

Archives

October 2025
M T W T F S S
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031  
« Sep    
Earth-News.info

The Earth News is an independent English-language daily published Website from all around the World News

Browse by Category

  • Business (20,132)
  • Ecology (851)
  • Economy (872)
  • Entertainment (21,746)
  • General (17,413)
  • Health (9,914)
  • Lifestyle (884)
  • News (22,149)
  • People (873)
  • Politics (883)
  • Science (16,082)
  • Sports (21,372)
  • Technology (15,854)
  • World (855)

Recent News

Watch the October 2025 Edition of the World Report – newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org

Watch the October 2025 Edition of the World Report – newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org

October 5, 2025
Shutdowns usually don’t do much economic damage, but there are reasons to worry this time – PBS

Why This Shutdown Could Hit the Economy Harder Than Usual

October 5, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

Go to mobile version