Biodegradable plastics will replace landfill

Anil Netravali, a professor of human ecology at Cornell University, has developed a new, completely biodegradable composition made from soy protein, biodegradable plastics, and vegetable fibers. This composition can be used as a compost instead of degrading. Computers, cars, packaging and other large quantities of plastic parts.

This fully biodegradable component is environmentally friendly and can replace plastic parts in automotive/train interiors, computers, packaging or other consumer products. Although the strength of plant fibers cannot be compared with graphite or fiber B, they are low cost and biodegradable. , And it can be generated every year.

Netravali's published his new discovery in the Materials Science journal. At the International Synthetic Engineering Conference held in Dover two years ago, Netravali demonstrated its research on the production of green components from ramie fiber.

Ramie fiber was extracted from the stems of an Asian evergreen shrub. The resin was derived from the soy protein isolate polymer. Two master students, Preeti Lodha and Sunghyun Nam, assisted him in this work.

Unlike non-degradable plastics from petroleum products, green components (such as reinforced plastics) use natural fibers embedded in a matrix of plants or resins to increase strength. Most non-degradable plastic components - derived from petroleum or synthetic polyurethanes and polyethylene and polypropylene - must be landfilled and only a small portion can be recycled or reused. Therefore, green plant ingredients are a cheap option for most products.

Taken out of renewable agricultural resources each year, this component is naturally biodegraded when it is collected as garbage, and is therefore very beneficial to environmental protection.

The Netravali team tried a large number of fibers, including kenaf stems, pineapple leaves, banana stems, etc. The resin materials studied included commercial resins such as vinyl alcohol and polylactone derived from microorganisms. He recently tried to improve the mechanical properties of the ingredients, such as hardness and strength, while reducing the water absorption that can cause premature degradation.