Photocatalytic Recovery of Aromatic Chemicals from Waste Plastics

Plastic waste is abundant in carbon and hydrogen resources. The development of sustainable catalytic process for the recovery of chemicals from waste plastic offers a promising strategy to simultaneously mitigate environmental pollution and reduce dependence on petrochemical products. Among the valuable targets, aromatic chemicals are particularly attractive which are widely used in polymers, pharmaceuticals, and fuels. Therefore, photocatalytic recovery of aromatic chemicals from waste plastic attracts huge attention to contribute to sustainable technology and circular economy, which couple solar energy with catalyst-controlled redox chemistry to enable plastic upcycling under mild conditions. In this Review, the fundamentals of photocatalytic plastic upcycling are outlined, including photocatalytic mechanism and the thermodynamic and kinetic challenges. Then, representative catalytic systems are discussed, such as polyethylene terephthalate, polystyrene, and polyphenylene sulfide. Finally, the future challenges and development directions are summarized, including development of catalytic system, mechanistic elucidation, real-world plastic feedstocks, and techno-economic analysis. This Review provides a comprehensive framework for understanding photocatalytic aromatic chemical recovery from waste plastic and offers guidance for the rational design of efficient, selective, and scalable solar-driven upcycling systems.