Catalytic chemical degradation of mixed synthetic textiles

Post-consumer textiles are notoriously difficult to recycle due to their mixed content, hence recycling rates are negligible. As the lifetime of textile products is estimated to have a median of 5 years, it is clear a large quantity is discarded annually through non-sustainable methods, i.e. incineration and landfill. This project will develop catalytic methods to recycle such materials, specifically polyesters and polyamides, using either hydrolysis or hydrogenation. Catalytic (poly) amide hydrogenation is a particular challenge and model systems using small molecule substrates to achieve this transformation are an initial target. Pincer and mixed-donor ligand transitional metal complexes offer catalytic starting points.