Recycling End-of-life Polycarbonate in Steelmaking; $\textit{Ab Initio}$ Study of Carbon Dissolution in Molten Iron

TL;DR

This study uses ab initio molecular dynamics to show that waste polycarbonate can supply a significant amount of carbon to molten iron in steelmaking, with hydrogen escaping as gas, suggesting a sustainable recycling pathway.

Contribution

The paper provides the first ab initio simulation evidence that polycarbonate's carbon dissolves effectively in molten iron, offering a novel waste-derived carbon source for steel production.

Findings

41% of polycarbonate's carbon dissolves in molten iron at 1823 K

Hydrogen from polycarbonate escapes as gas, not dissolving in iron

Polycarbonate's carbon dissolution is comparable to graphite at similar conditions

Abstract

The scarcity of fossil fuels as carbon resources has motivated the steelmaking industry to search for new carbon sources such as end-of-life polymeric products. Using $\textit{ab initio}$ molecular dynamics simulation, we demonstrate that 41% of polycarbonate's carbon content is readily dissolved in molten iron's interface at $T$ = 1823 K which is comparable to graphite with $\sim$ 58% carbon content dissolution. More importantly, we demonstrate that polycarbonate's hydrogen content does not dissolve in molten iron but rather escape in gaseous form. Therefore, waste polycarbonate constitutes a feasible carbon source for steelmaking.