{
  "abstract": "Poly(bisphenol A carbonate) (BPA-PC) is an engineering thermoplastic whose recycling is hindered by its Code-7 classification and environmental BPA leaching. Here, we report water-soluble molecularly imprinted nanozymes for the selective depolymerization of BPA-PC under mild alkaline conditions. Synthesized within cross-linked surfactant micelles, the optimized nanozyme combines shape-complementary BPA-matched pockets with surface basicity, achieving a 72-fold rate enhancement over porcine pancreatic lipase. Fluorescence titrations with a soluble dansyl-labeled BPA-PC dimer confirm strong substrate recognition (Ka ~106 M−1). Gel permeation chromatography reveals uniform reductions of 52–55% across Mn, Mw, and Mz, indicative of a random endo-chain cleavage mechanism. On macroscopic BPA-PC films, the nanozyme induces pronounced cracking and surface erosion, whereas polyethylene terephthalate (PET) control films remain undamaged. Furthermore, the aqueous nanozyme retains ~75% of its initial catalytic activity across five consecutive degradation cycles following simple phase extraction. This study demonstrates that tailored, shape-complementary nanozymes provide a generalizable, selective biocatalytic alternative for the circular chemical recycling of recalcitrant engineering plastics.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Chemistry, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011-3111, USA"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 2,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Tien Tan Bui"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yan Zhao",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-1215-2565"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/5e95cfaxhj573.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3390/polym18202560",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13709287",
  "id": "5e95cfaxhj573",
  "issns": [
    "2073-4360"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/20/2560",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "1312|Enzyme Catalysis and Immobilization"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7222969178",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13709287?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13709287",
  "pmid": "42942681",
  "published": "2026-10-17",
  "publisher": "MDPI AG",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/5e95cfaxhj573.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:18:44Z",
      "native_id": "10.3390/polym18202560",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/20/2560"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:22:12Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42942681",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42942681"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biochemistry",
      "origin": "openalex:1312|Enzyme Catalysis and Immobilization",
      "subfield": "molecular-biology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Rational Design of Molecularly Imprinted Nanozymes for Selective Degradation of Poly(bisphenol A carbonate) (BPA-PC)",
  "title_text": "Rational Design of Molecularly Imprinted Nanozymes for Selective Degradation of Poly(bisphenol A carbonate) (BPA-PC)",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:22:12Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/5e95cfaxhj573",
  "venue": "Polymers",
  "versions": []
}