One-Up on Doc Brown

It was previously reported that chemists, fulfilling Back to the Future prophecy, successfully converted plant material into fuel that vehicles can use directly. Now it seems that reality may have the potential to one-up even the great Doc Brown.

Researchers at Chevron and the University of Kentucky have successfully converted waste plastic into lubricating oil in laboratory experiments. 60% of the plastic used in the pilot study was converted into a wax with the right molecular properties for further processing into products such as motor oil or transmission fluid. If the process becomes readily available, there should be no short supply as Americans use about 25 million tons of plastic each year, 24 million tons of which end up in landfills.

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