Alternating magnetic field initiated catalytic deconstruction of medical waste to produce hydrogen-rich gases and graphite

Abstract

During the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, there has been a dramatic increase in the use of medical products and personal protective equipment, such as masks, gowns, and disposable syringes, to treat patients or administer vaccines. However, this may lead to generation of large quantities of biohazardous medical waste. Here, an alternating-magnetic-field-initiated catalytic strategy is proposed to convert disposable syringes into hydrogen-rich gases and high-value graphite. Specifically, in addition to selecting heavy fraction of bio-oil as initiator, disposable syringe needles are used as radio frequency electromagnetic wave receptors to initiate the deconstruction of disposable syringe plastic. The highest H2 yield of 39.9 mmol g-1 is achieved, and 30.1 mmol g-1 is maintained after 10 cycles. Moreover, a high carbon yield of 286 mg g-1 can be obtained. Beyond disposable syringes, this strategy could help to solve the emerging issue for other types of medical waste (e.g., mask and protective clothing) disposal.