Catalytic Strategies for Plastic and Microplastic Degradation: Catalyst Design, Mechanisms, and Emerging Processes

The accumulation of plastic and microplastic waste is one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time. Catalysis offers a powerful chemical toolkit for breaking down persistent synthetic polymers into valuable monomers, fuels, or feedstocks. Yet mechanistic understanding of how catalysts interact with complex polymer substrates remains limited, and rational catalyst design for plastic degradation is still in its early stages.This Research Topic invites contributions that advance the fundamental understanding of catalytic processes applied to plastic and microplastic degradation. The emphasis is on catalyst design, reaction mechanisms at the molecular and surface level, and the development of novel catalytic systems — rather than environmental monitoring or toxicological studies.Topics of interest include (but are not limited to):-Rational design of catalysts for selective polymer depolymerization-Mechanistic insights into catalytic degradation of synthetic polymers-Photocatalytic and electrocatalytic approaches to microplastic breakdown-Heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysis for plastic waste conversion-Metal oxide and metal complex catalysts for polymer chain scission-Catalyst performance under environmentally relevant conditions-Catalytic upcycling of plastic waste into monomers or platform chemicals-Multiscale modelling of catalytic polymer degradation processes-Surface reaction studies of catalyst–polymer interactions-Novel catalytic processes for low-energy plastic recycling Topic editors: Dr. Anupam Singha Roy, Diana Sannino, DIDIER ROBERT Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/83413/catalytic-strategies-for-plastic-and-microplastic-degradation-catalyst-design-mechanisms-and-emerging-processes