Salt-templated transformation of waste plastics into single-atom catalysts for environmental and energy applications

Shiying Ren, Xin Xu, Kunsheng Hu, Shuang Zhong, Yingjie Gao, Bernt Johannessen, Wei Ren, Hongyu Zhou, Zhong-Shuai Zhu, Yidi Chen, Xiaoguang Duan () and Shaobin Wang ()
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Shiying Ren: The University of Adelaide
Xin Xu: The University of Adelaide
Kunsheng Hu: The University of Adelaide
Shuang Zhong: The University of Adelaide
Yingjie Gao: The University of Adelaide
Bernt Johannessen: Australian Synchrotron, ANSTO
Wei Ren: The University of Adelaide
Hongyu Zhou: The University of Adelaide
Zhong-Shuai Zhu: The University of Adelaide
Yidi Chen: The University of Adelaide
Xiaoguang Duan: The University of Adelaide
Shaobin Wang: The University of Adelaide

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract Upcycling plastic waste into single-atom catalysts (SACs) not only offers a sustainable solution for plastic waste management but also yields valuable functional materials for catalytic applications. Here, we report a simple and scalable method to transform various types of plastics, including polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, and their mixtures, into a diversity of porous SACs with different coordination chemistry and their excellent applications in a variety of catalytic reactions. Lamellar transition metal chloride salts (Ni, Fe, Co, Mn, and Cu) are employed as a template and catalyst for confined carbonization of plastics into layered SACs. An appropriate plastic-to-salt ratio is the key factor for preventing metal agglomeration during SAC synthesis. The SACs demonstrate exceptional catalytic activity in oxidative degradation of a range of persistent organic pollutants for water treatment and excel in electrocatalytic systems such as oxygen/nitrogen reduction reactions and lithium-sulfur batteries. This technique provides a versatile, scalable, and efficient strategy for upcycling solid wastes into high-performance materials for environmental and energy catalysis.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-63648-z

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