Reusing personal protective equipment and waste plastics in biofuel production and use in diesel engines: Priority for the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Over a million annual deaths from COVID-19, a disease caused by the acute respiratory distress disease corona virus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), have spread across the globe. Researchers and scientists are focusing on developing various remedies to treat and prevent infection from the spread. Personal protective equipment (PPE) has progressed into a statutory authority for health staff in recent times. Even though PPE kits are shown to deliver sufficient protection against the disease, their disposal is seeming to be environmentally hazardous. The public bodies manage the proper disposal of PPE in compliance with the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations. The substantial percentage of wasted personal protective equipment kits would add to the burden of plastic on our environment. This review describes a strategy for recycling personal protective equipment kits by repurposing them into alternative fuels and using them in diesel engines.

Keywords

• COVID-19
• PPE
• Alternative fuel
• Diesel engines