(Photo : Dom J)
Organic Waste
An increasing quantity of foreign material is discovered in organic waste, in Italy, an estimation has been made that about 5% of organic waste is comprised of non-biodegradable materials, like metals and plastic bags. Two-third of these are from plastic materials, and a notable 50% comes from packaging.
In organic waste from household, common instance includes plastic bags and fruit label stickers confused for compostable and alternatives of biodegradable. Because just a small quantity of this plastic can be gotten rid of or repurposed, almost all end up in landfills.
Polyethylene-based Plastic
Efforts should be made to decrease the quantity of plastic waste disposed in this manner - for both environmental and economic reasons, according to a group of researchers at the University of Milan-Bicocca, Italy. Their solution makes use of the capabilities of some microorganisms that consume polyethylene-based plastic.
Apr 19, 2021 07:00 AM EDT
Scientists at Ames Laboratory s Institute for Cooperative Upcycling of Plastics (iCOUP) have discovered a chemical method that turns recycled plastics into biodegradable, use chemicals that can be used as surfactants and detergents in a variety of applications. Plastics may have more sustainable and cost-effective lifecycles as a result of this process.
(Photo : Magda Ehlers)
The researchers focused their efforts on deconstructing polyolefins, which account for more than half of all recycled plastics and are used virtually every product imaginable, including toys, food packaging, piping systems, water bottles, clothes, shoes, vehicles, and furniture. You might call plastics, especially polyolefins, too successful, said iCOUP Director Aaron Sadow. They are good for all of the applications that we need them for - solid, lightweight, thermally stable, chemically resistant - but the issue arises when we no longer use them.