Recycling of End-of-Life Poly(bisphenol A carbonate) via Alkali Metal Halide-Catalyzed Phenolysis

The chemical recycling of end-of-life plastic waste streams can contribute to a resource-conserving and sustainable society. This matter of recycling is composed of a sequence of depolymerization and subsequent polymerization reactions. In this regard, we have studied the chemical recycling of end-of-life poly(bisphenol A carbonate) applying phenol as depolymerization reagent. In the presence of catalytic amounts of alkali metal halides as products bisphenol A and diphenyl carbonate were obtained in excellent turnover frequencies of up to 1392 h⁻¹ and short reaction times. These depolymerization products offer the straightforward possibility to close the cycle by producing new poly(bisphenol A carbonate) and as second product phenol, which can be reused for further depolymerizations.