clipped from: environment.newscientist.com   

Giant microwave turns plastic back to oil


A US company is taking plastics recycling to another level – turning them back into the oil they were made from, and gas.


All that is needed, claims Global Resource Corporation (GRC), is a finely tuned microwave and – hey presto! – a mix of materials that were made from oil can be reduced back to oil and combustible gas (and a few leftovers).


The Hawk-10 uses specific microwave frequencies to extract oil and gas from plastics (Image: Global Resource Corporation)