Scientists at the Universities of Birmingham and Bath in the United Kingdom say they have developed a “faster, more efficient way” of recycling plant-based biopolymers or bioplastics. The research was funded by the U.K.-based Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. The research team says its chemical recycling method not only speeds up the process, but can convert discarded bioplastics into a new product—a biodegradable solvent—that “can be sold for use in a wide variety of industries including cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.”
Bioplastics, made from polylactic acid (PLA), are used in products including disposable cups, packaging materials and toys. Typically, once they reach the end of their useful life, they are disposed of in landfills or composted, biodegrading over periods of up to several months, say the researchers.
The method was applied to three separate PLA products– a disposable cup, some 3D printer scrap, and a toy. The team found the cup was most easily converted to methyl lactate at lower temperatures, but even the bulkier plastic in the toy could be converted using higher temperatures. “We were excited to see that it was possible to obtain high quantities of the green solvent regardless of samples’ characteristics due to colorants, additives, sizes and even molecular weight,” says lead author Luis Román-Ramírez of the University of Birmingham’s School of Chemical Engineering.
Source: Recycling Today
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