Synergistic electronic effect in high-entropy PdPtSnBiAg metallene for electrochemical reforming of PET plastic into glycolic acid

Abstract

The electrocatalytic transformation of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic to valuable products represents a highly promising strategy for the re-utilization of waste resources, and its efficiency is highly related to the identification of active and selective electrocatalysts. Herein, high-entropy PdPtSnBiAg metallene (HEA-PdPtSnBiAgene) is designed via a solvothermal method as an efficient electrocatalyst for the PET-derived ethylene glycol oxidation reaction (EGOR). In PET hydrolysate, HEA-PdPtSnBiAgene exhibits a high Faraday efficiency of 91.8% at 0.91 V, as well as excellent cycle stability. Both experimental investigations and theoretical analyses support that the synergistic electronic effect of HEA-PdPtSnBiAgene provides multi-level active sites, which can reduce the EGOR energy barrier and strengthen the C–C and O–H bond energies of EG, thus promoting the EG-to-GA conversion. This research contributes to advanced insights to develop unique high-entropy metallene for the electrochemical upcycling of PET plastic.