A continuous flow process and system for depolymerizing plastic. A heterogeneous mixture of solid plastic particles, a solvent, and a catalyst are pumped continuously through a heating zone at a flow rate resulting in a particle speed sufficient to keep the plastic particles in suspension. The heterogeneous mixture is heated in the heating zone and maintained in a hold zone to complete depolymerization of the mixture into a homogeneous solution containing a liquefied reaction product. The homogeneous solution is cooled to solidify and precipitate a solid reaction product. The solid reaction product is separated from the solvent to be recycled. Contaminants are removed from the solvent, and the solvent is recirculated for use as a constituent of the heterogeneous mixture.

Synthesizing upconverting nanoparticles includes heating a precursor solution comprising one or more rare earth salts, an alkali metal salt or alkaline earth salt, and a solvent comprising a plasticizer in a microwave reactor to yield a product mixture, and cooling the product mixture to yield the upconverting nanoparticles. Core-shell upconverting nanoparticles are synthesized by combining the upconverting nanoparticles with a precursor solution comprising one or more rare earth salts, an alkali metal salt or alkaline earth salt, and a solvent comprising a plasticizer to yield a nanoparticle mixture, heating the nanoparticle mixture in a microwave reactor to yield a product mixture, and cooling the product mixture to yield the core-shell upconverting nanoparticles.

A chemical reaction method includes preparing a chemical reaction apparatus including a horizontal flow reactor partitioned into multiple chambers by multiple partition plates. A liquid content horizontally flows with an unfilled space provided thereabove. a microwave generator and a waveguide that transmits microwaves to the unfilled space are also included. The reactor is inclined such that, in each of the chambers, a weir height on an inlet side is higher than a weir height on an outlet side by at least an overflow depth at the partition plate on the outlet side. The content is flowed over each of the multiple partition plates inside the reactor. The content flowing inside the reactor is irradiated with microwaves. The inclination angle of the reactor is changed in each of the chambers so that a weir height on an inlet side is higher than a weir height on an outlet side.

A chemical reaction apparatus includes a horizontal flow-type reactor in which a content horizontally flows with an unfilled space being provided thereabove, a microwave generator that generates microwaves, and at least one waveguide that transmits the microwaves generated by the microwave generator to the unfilled space in the reactor.

A microwave-based thermal coupling chemical looping gasification method and device. The device includes: a microwave radiation cavity; a loading recess of a microwave absorbing material; and a quartz pipe reaction cavity between the microwave radiation cavity and the loading recess of a microwave absorbing material. A microwave generator consisting of magnetrons is provided at a central portion of the microwave radiation cavity and below the loading recess. An infrared temperature-measuring probe group is arranged at two ends of the magnetrons. Two ends of the microwave radiation cavity are connected to a first and second three-way valves, in communication with the ambient atmosphere and a protection gas charging device. A protection gas cooling device and a protection gas circulating fan are sequentially connected in series on a pipeline between the valves.

A facile solvothermal method can be used to synthesize metal alkanoate nanoparticles using a metal nitrate precursor, alcohol/water, and alkanoic acid. The method can produce lanthanide (e.g., La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, or Yb) and transition metal (e.g., Ag, Co, Cu, or Pb) alkanoate nanoparticles (<100 nm) with spherical morphology. These hybrid nanomaterials adopt a lamellar structure consisting of inorganic metal cation layers separated by an alkanoate anion bilayer and exhibit liquid crystalline phases during melting. For example, thermal analysis indicated the formation of Smectic A liquid crystal phases by lanthanide decanoate nanoparticles, with the smaller lanthanides (Ln=Sm, Gd, Er) displaying additional solid intermediate and Smectic C phases. The formation of liquid crystal phases by the smaller lanthanide ions suggests that these nanoscale materials have vastly different thermal properties than their bulk counterparts, which do not exhibit liquid crystal behavior. Photoluminescence spectroscopy revealed the lanthanide decanoates to be highly optically active, producing strong visible emissions that corresponded to expected electronic transitions by the various lanthanide ions. The metal alkanoate nanoparticles can be calcined to produce metal oxide nanoparticles.

The present invention provides a microwave pyrolysis reactor (1) comprising an inner pipe element (2) and a housing (4), wherein the inner pipe element (2) is made of a microwave transparent material and is arranged within the housing and comprises a first open end (5) and a second open end (6); the housing (4) comprises a first inner surface, enclosing an annular space (7,44) around the inner pipe element (2), a waste inlet (10), a solids outlet (11), a gas outlet (12), and a port (13) for a microwave waveguide (14), the waste inlet and the solids outlet are in communication with the first open end and the second open end of the inner pipe element, respectively, and the port for a microwave waveguide is in communication with the annular space; the inner pipe element, the waste inlet and the solids outlet of the housing form parts of a conduit not in fluid communication with the annular space around the inner pipe element and wherein the inner pipe element is clamped within the housing via a cylinder-shaped resilient assembly (54) arranged at at least one of the first open end (5) and the second open end of the inner pipe element, the resilient assembly is adapted to allow longitudinal expansion of the inner pipe element (2) and comprises a central through-going passage (57) having a centerline in line with a centerline (C) of the inner pipe element.

A facile solvothermal method can be used to synthesize metal alkanoate nanoparticles using a metal nitrate precursor, alcohol/water, and alkanoic acid. The method can produce lanthanide (e.g., La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, or Yb) and transition metal (e.g., Ag, Co, Cu, or Pb) alkanoate nanoparticles (<100 nm) with spherical morphology. These hybrid nanomaterials adopt a lamellar structure consisting of inorganic metal cation layers separated by an alkanoate anion bilayer and exhibit liquid crystalline phases during melting. The metal alkanoate nanoparticles can be calcined to produce metal oxide nanoparticles.

A quantum dot synthesizing vessel includes an accommodation part which accommodates a reaction mixture therein, and an outer part which includes a microwave absorbing material and covers the accommodation part, where a plurality of openings exposing at least a portion of the accommodation part is defined in the outer part.

A continuous flow process and system for depolymerizing plastic. A heterogeneous mixture of solid plastic particles, a solvent, and a catalyst are pumped continuously through a heating zone at a flow rate resulting in a particle speed sufficient to keep the plastic particles in suspension. The heterogeneous mixture is heated in the heating zone and maintained in a hold zone to complete depolymerization of the mixture into a homogeneous solution containing a liquefied reaction product. The homogeneous solution is cooled to solidify and precipitate a solid reaction product. The solid reaction product is separated from the solvent to be recycled. Contaminants are removed from the solvent, and the solvent is recirculated for use as a constituent of the heterogeneous mixture.