Complete Breakdown of Plexiglas into Its Original Building Blocks
Coloured Plexiglas. Researchers have developed a process to fully break down this plastic into its building blocks for reuse. (Image: ETHZ/Adobe Stock/AI-generated)
March 3, 2025 – Polymer chemists at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETHZ) have discovered a groundbreaking method to almost completely break down PMMA (Plexiglas) into its original monomer building blocks. According to ETHZ, this is the first technique that enables near-total recycling of Plexiglas.
The process involves breaking down polymer chains into individual monomers, which can then be purified using simple distillation techniques. The key to this method lies in a chlorinated solvent: when exposed to UV light, the solvent releases chlorine radicals, which trigger the breakdown of the polymer chains.
