A Facile Route to Catalytic Degradation of Polystyrene over Zeolite and Barium Carbonate

The present work investigated the catalytic degradation of polystyrene over zeolite and barium carbonate catalysts under heat reflux. The spectroscopic analysis confirmed the formation of alkyl benzene on degradation of polystyrene over both zeolite and BaCO3 catalysts. The thermal stability of the polystyrene products after degradation was found to be lower compared to the pure polystyrene. The crystallinity and morphology of the polystyrene products before and after degradation were also examined using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. In addition, a plausible mechanism of the degradation pathway of polystyrene over zeolite and BaCO3 was elucidated. The degradation of polystyrene over zeolite produced ethyl benzene and cumene with a high selectivity while styrene monomer was obtained in degradation of polystyrene catalyzed by BaCO3.