Washington DC, Sept. 21 -- Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a relatively simple method to convert polyethylene, the widely used plastic found in shopping bags and cutting boards, into gasoline- and diesel-like fuels.

The process uses inexpensive aluminum-based molten salts to break down the plastic's long molecular chains into smaller hydrocarbons, yielding around 60% gasoline under relatively mild conditions.

According to the ScienceDaily website, researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a new way to transform polyethylene, one of the world's most common plastics, into gasoline- and diesel-like fuels.

Polyethylene is widely used in products such as shopping bags a...