COVID-19 has brought in many challenges to almost every aspect of our lives, one such change is the use of PPE. We are now faced with the challenge of what to do with the voluminous amount of PPE’s generated and how to best dispose of it safely and sustainably. Could it be transformed into biofuels? The below article sounds like a big breakthrough to handle the waste generated into a valuable resource. This would be a great relief to Mother Earth and would give a renewable option for the increase in single-use PPE that has become a necessity in our "new normal" daily lives .
Recycling of PPE's into biofuel
The research from the University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES) in Uttarakhand shows how billions of items of disposable PPE can be converted from its polypropylene (plastic) state into biofuels - which is known to be at par with standard fossil fuels. "The transformation into biocrude, a type of synthetic fuel, will not just prevent the severe aftereffects to humankind and the environment but also produce a source of energy," said study lead author Dr Sapna Jain from UPES.