DOI: https://doi.org/10.9767/bcrec.20429

A Green and Sustainable Approach for Converting Laboratory Latex Glove Waste into Liquid Fuel via Microwave-assisted Pyrolysis

1Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, 55281, Indonesia

2Research Center for Chemistry, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), The B. J. Habibie Science and Technology Area, South Tangerang, Banten, 15314, Indonesia

Received: 22 Jun 2025; Revised: 21 Jul 2025; Accepted: 22 Jul 2025; Available online: 26 Jul 2025; Published: 30 Oct 2025.
Editor(s): Istadi Istadi
Open Access Copyright (c) 2025 by Authors, Published by BCREC Publishing Group
Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Abstract

The extensive use of chemical laboratories for experimental and research activities has resulted in the substantial accumulation of latex glove waste, a widely used form of personal protective equipment (PPE). This study presents a novel and sustainable approach for converting laboratory latex glove waste into liquid fuel using microwave-assisted pyrolysis (MAP), which aligns with the principles of green chemistry. Under optimal conditions, including a microwave power of 800 W and an irradiation time of 30 min, the process achieved a liquid product yield of 52.58 wt%, with 41.86 wt% consisting of gasoline-range hydrocarbons (C₅–C₁₂). The primary compound identified in the liquid product was D-limonene (C₁₀H₁₆), a valuable monocyclic terpene. Compared to conventional pyrolysis conducted in a semi-batch reactor, the MAP process exhibited superior performance in terms of liquid yield, gasoline-range hydrocarbon content, total hydrocarbon composition, and calorific value. This innovative waste-to-fuel conversion method demonstrates the strong potential of MAP as an efficient and environmentally responsible strategy for waste valorization and resource recovery. Copyright © 2025 by Authors, Published by BCREC Publishing Group. This is an open access article under the CC BY-SA License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0).

Keywords: Microwave-assisted pyrolysis; latex glove waste; green chemistry; sustainable fuel production; waste valorization
Funding: Universitas Gadjah Mada

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Section: Original Research Articles
Language : EN
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