At a time when the harmful impacts of plastic on the environment are increasingly known, it is imperative to find more efficient alternatives. The Federal Polytechnic School of Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland has created a new type of plastic identical to PET but made from plants. In addition to being more environmentally friendly, it is a resistant plastic, which resists heat and protects against gases such as oxygen, making it a promising solution for food packaging, clothing and even filaments for 3D printers.
“We just ‘cook’ wood or other inedible plant material such as agricultural waste in cheap chemicals to produce the plastic precursor in one step”explains Jeremy S. Luterbacher, the researcher who coordinated the study.
During the chemical process, aldehyde is added to stabilize parts of the plant material and prevent its destruction during extraction. “Using this simple technique, we were able to convert up to 25% of the weight of agricultural waste, or 95% of the purified sugar, into plastic”says the study’s lead author, Lorenz Manker.
What makes all the difference in this plastic is the intact structure of the sugar, reveals Jeremy S. Luterbacher.“IThis makes it incredibly easy to make, because you don’t have to modify what nature gives you, and it’s simple to degrade because you can go back to a molecule that is already abundant in nature.”.
The article was published in the scientific journal Nature.
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