Simultaneous catalytic hydrogen (H2) production and plastic waste degradation under light, known as photoreforming, is a novel approach to green fuel production and efficient waste management. Here, we use a high-entropy oxide (HEO), a new family of catalysts with five or more principal cations in their structure, for plastic degradation and simultaneous H2 production. The HEO shows higher activity than that of P25 TiO2, a benchmark photocatalyst, for the degradation of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics in water. Several valuable products are produced by photoreforming of PET bottles and microplastics including H2, terephthalate, ethylene glycol and formic acid. The high activity is attributed to the diverse existence of several cations in the HEO lattice, lattice defects, and appropriate charge carrier lifetime. These findings suggest that HEOs possess high potential as new catalysts for concurrent plastic waste conversion and clean H2 production.

中文翻译：

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使用高熵氧化物催化剂对塑料废料进行高效光整


在光照下同时催化氢气 （H2） 生产和塑料废物降解，称为光重整，是绿色燃料生产和高效废物管理的一种新方法。在这里，我们使用高熵氧化物 （HEO），这是一种结构中具有 5 个或更多主阳离子的新型催化剂系列，用于塑料降解和同时产生 H2。HEO 在水中降解聚对苯二甲酸乙二醇酯 （PET） 塑料的活性高于基准光催化剂 P25 TiO2。通过 PET 瓶和微塑料的光改性生产出几种有价值的产品，包括 H2、对苯二甲酸酯、乙二醇和甲酸。高活性归因于 HEO 晶格中多种阳离子的多样性存在、晶格缺陷和适当的电荷载流子寿命。这些发现表明，HEO 作为同步塑料废物转化和清洁 H2 生产的新催化剂具有很高的潜力。