Aluminium foil waste can be converted into biofuel catalyst, says Queen’s Univ

A researcher at Queen’s University in Belfast, has developed a technique to convert dirty aluminium foil into a biofuel catalyst. The technique would help in solving waste and energy problems.  Around 20,000 tonnes of aluminium foil packaging is wasted every year in the UK, a researcher said.

Researcher has created a crystallisation method that would obtain pure aluminium salt crystals from aluminium foil. This catalyst is environmentally-friendly, effective and cheaper than the commercial catalyst.

The crystals can be used for preparation of alumina catalyst. This type of alumina comes from bauxite ore, which is mined in countries such as West Africa, the West Indies and Australia.

Ahmed Osman, who took on the project under the University's Sustainable Energy, Pioneering Research Programme, said that the catalyst from aluminium foil cost about £120/kg while the commercial alumina catalyst comes in at around £305/kg.

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Osman said: "I have always been inspired by chemistry and I believe that catalysis especially can make the world a better place. One day I took a walk through our laboratories at Queen's and found lots of Aluminium foil waste so I did a little digging and after speaking to my colleagues, I ran my experiment and was astonished by the ultrapure single crystals – I didn't expect it to be 100% pure.”

"This breakthrough is significant as not only is the alumina more pure than its commercial counterpart, it could also reduce the amount of aluminium foil going to landfill while also sidestepping the environmental damage associated with mining bauxite."