Guoliang (Greg) Liu Published in Nature

Guoliang (Greg) Liu, Associate Professor of Chemistry, was published in Science for his research on plastic upcycling. His paper is titled "Chemical upcycling of polyethylene, polypropylene, and mixtures to high-value surfactants" (DOI: 10.1126/science.adh0993).

"Plastic waste is one of the top challenges facing humankind," Liu said. "The continuous accumulation of plastic wastes, which are prominent due to their importance to our daily lives, demands innovative solutions to either recycle or upcycle them. In our lab, we perceive plastic wastes as a type of "above-ground" crude oil that requires no drilling or pumping, and we use them as a feedstock to produce high-value chemicals."