Titanate Nanotubes Modified With Zinc and Its Application in Post-Consumer PET Depolymerization

The development of nanostructures has received notoriety due to the properties that the nanometric scale provides to the material. Among these properties, the increase in the catalytic activity due to the high specific surface area of nanostructures has been the focus of several studies. Among the nanometric catalysts that have been studied, titanate nanotubes present versatility of applications since they can be modified through the functionalization or ion exchange adding the structure metals that increase the catalytic efficiency. For the depolymerization of post-consumer polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles by glycolysis, a chemical recycling method that is in accordance with the principles of sustainable development, which aims to obtain the bis(2-hydroxyethyl) terephthalate (BHET) monomer, sodium titanate nanotubes (NaTNT) and zinc titanate nanotubes (ZnTNT) were used as catalysts. The nanostructures were efficient in the PET depolymerization reaction for 2, 3, and 4 h, converting PET into BHET with yield higher than 65% (w/w).