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Updated: Apr 4, 2026

Scalable Step-by-Step Approach of Sustainable Bioplastic Production from Food Waste
Published on: July 18, 2025
Continuous Flow Metathesis for Direct Valorization of Food Waste: An Example of Cocoa Butter Triglyceride
Christiane Schotten1, Dorota Plaza2, Simone Manzini3
1Institut für Technische und Makromolekulare Chemie, RWTH Aachen University , Worringerweg 1, 52074 Aachen, Germany ; Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Cambridge , Cambridge CB2 3RA, United Kingdom.
Abstract:
The direct chemical conversion of cocoa butter triglycerides, a material available as a postmanufacture waste stream from the food industry, to 1-decene by way of ethenolysis is reported. The conversion of the raw waste material was made possible by use of 1 mol % of the [RuCl2(iBu-phoban)2(3-phenylindenyl)] catalyst. The process has been investigated in both batch and flow conditions, where the latter approach employs a Teflon AF-2400 tube-in-tube gas-liquid membrane contactor to deliver ethylene to the reaction system. These preliminary studies culminate in a continuous processing system, which maintained a constant output over a 150 min period tested.
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