Oak Ridge Lab Develops Molten-Salt Process to Convert Polyethylene Into Gasoline, Diesel

Plastic to Gasoline Just Got Cheaper. The Catch Is Not Chemistry

The headline writes itself: plastic bags become gasoline. Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a way to convert polyethylene waste into gasoline- and diesel-like fuels using molten aluminum chloride salts, and the story circulated across science outlets this September. The chemistry is genuinely interesting. It runs below 170 degrees Celsius, roughly the temperature […]

Oak Ridge Lab Develops Molten-Salt Process to Convert Polyethylene Into Gasoline, Diesel

Researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a method to convert polyethylene, one of the world's most common plastics, into gasoline- and diesel-like fuels, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. The findings were released on September 21, 2026, and ORNL has applied for a patent on the technology. The process combines polyethylene with molten salts containing alu…