Brajendra Kumar Sharma (center) a senior research scientist at the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center at the U. of I., with research chemist Dheeptha Murali (left) and process chemist Jennifer Deluhery, converted plastic shopping bags into diesel fuel. Credit: L. Brian Stauffer

The research utilized plastic grocery bags to make Diesel fuel and compared results of blending this diesel with biodiesel and compared the results to petrol diesel. These low value film plastics are a worldwide problem, especially in the oceans where sea life can not distinguish between plastic bags and food sources.

“Diesel obtained from pyrolysis of plastic is as compatible with biodiesel as ULSD due to similar hydrocarbon structures and chain length distribution of molecules.”

This “plastic soup” in the oceans can be cleaned up and viably processed in to fuel, in a very similar manner in which land based plastics can be processed.

Here is a link to the latest research paper published by the University of Illinois.
http://news.illinois.edu/news/14/0212bags_oil_BrajendraKumarSharma.html

Read more at:
http://phys.org/news/2014-02-plastic-bags-fine-diesel-fuel.html#jCp