Daniel Kong

Global Challenge: Reduce the Growing Accumulation of Plastic Waste and Pollution in Landfills

Abstract:

"Polystyrene is a common consumer disposable plastic used in styrofoam, food and drink packaging, pipes, insulation, and automotive parts. However, polystyrene takes upwards of 500 years to decompose in landfills, and even when it decomposes, it breaks down into microplastics that may leach into water supplies and oceans. In the United States, the vast majority of municipalities do not accept polystyrene for recycling due to various processing challenges, such as the emissions of toxic fumes when incinerated, significant required energy input, and the degradation of the quality of recycled polystyrene. This makes polystyrene waste a major global contributor to the growing excess of plastic waste causing large-scale ecosystem pollution. One of the United Nations’ primary Sustainable Development Goals is to “Ensure Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns”, which aligns with New York University Tandon’s research focus on sustainability. We hope that the creation of a new pathway from recycled polystyrene waste to feedstock for the chemicals industry can help lower the environmental impact of current chemicals and plastics production patterns.

My project will propose a more economical, large-scale process design to convert polystyrene into benzoic acid, a common feedstock for the chemical industry, that may reduce the current economic downside of incorporating polystyrene recycling into municipal waste management. This reaction mechanism will use light to drive the degradation of the polystyrene. Unlike current methods such as pyrolysis, this approach does not require extremely high operating temperatures and energy input, does not emit toxic fumes into the atmosphere, and reduces carbon emissions."

Bio:

Born and raised on Long Island, New York, Daniel is a graduating senior at New York University majoring in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. He loves the problem-solving nature of chemical engineering and hopes to use those skills and passion to make a positive impact on his community and contribute to solving global challenges. His academic interests are in sustainable energy and pharmaceuticals.

Daniel enjoys exploring these interests at NYU and internships. He is working on a Zinc-Ion power source as the technical coordinator of the Chem-E Car VIP team and is developing a computational model to predict the impact of shale gas production on energy systems and the chemical industry as a part of Professor Mallapragada’s Sustainable Energy Transitions Group. This past summer, he interned at Pfizer on the Materials Science team, where he programmed an automated tool for the statistical validation of particle size results and learned plenty about the pharmaceutical industry.

For his GLASS project, he is designing an economical, low-emissions process to upcycle polystyrene into benzoic acid, a common feedstock for the chemical industry, by means of a catalyzed photooxidation reaction. The goal is to reduce the current economic downside of incorporating polystyrene recycling into municipal waste management services.

He loves seeking out beautiful views through hikes in the Hudson Valley or exploring the unique neighborhoods of the City. He stays active however possible through the gym, pickleball, and even participated in Pfizer's recreational soccer league during his internship.