UIC engineers develop plant-based plastic alternative for use in shopping bags
To tackle these challenges, Achinivu-Ibagere’s research team focuses on using materials from plants, like cellulose and lignin, to create biodegradable plastic substitutes.
SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Shopping at a pharmacy, grocery or other store in the city of Chicago? You’ll now pay $0.15 for every disposable plastic bag you pack your purchases in. The bag tax, which went up from $0.10 on Jan. 1 this year, was implemented in part to discourage reliance on single-use plastics.
Most shopping bags today are made of low-density polyethylene, which can take hundreds of years to decompose in the environment. But one research group at the University of Illinois Chicago has created a sustainable alternative: a plant-based bioplastic, designed for use in everyday objects like shopping bags. It’s biodegradable, meaning it can be decomposed by natural microorganisms in the environment. And it’s designed to match the strength and performance of conventional plastic bags while reducing environmental impact, the team reports in a recent study published in Chemical Engineering Journal.
“Most plastics are derived from crude oil, which is a finite resource and is fast depleting,” said Taiwo Zacchaeus Adesanya, first author of the new study and a PhD student in Ezinne Achinivu-Ibagere’s lab in the UIC College of Engineering.
Humanity has produced at least 9 billion tons of plastic, according to estimates, and a large chunk of that volume has been discarded into landfills or the environment.
“There are recycling facilities for some, but the percentage recycled is still very low compared to the stock volume of plastics produced,” Adesanya said.
Pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and wildlife harm result, said Achinivu-Ibagere, an assistant professor in the department of chemical engineering.
“Developing alternatives that are renewable, biodegradable and lower in environmental impact is becoming essential for advancing a more sustainable, circular materials economy,” she said.
A plant-powered solution
To tackle these challenges, Achinivu-Ibagere’s research team focuses on using materials from plants, like cellulose and lignin, to create biodegradable plastic substitutes.
Most plants have cellulose and lignin in their cell walls. Cellulose gives a plant stalk or stem its strength, while lignin acts as a glue that binds cellulose and other structural molecules together.
“Our research is focused on harnessing the strength of cellulose and the barrier properties of lignin to make a bioplastic,” Adesanya said.
In their new study, the researchers used a combination of commercially available cellulose and lignin from Miscanthus, also known as silvergrass. They also tested lignin from a variety of plant sources, including hybrid poplar (a hardwood), pine (a softwood), corn and sugarcane, as well as lignin derived from paper-processing byproducts.
“Over the years, cellulose has been used to make paper and a lot of other materials,” Adesanya said. “But in the process of extracting cellulose from crops and from trees, there is a brownish, gooey material that is taken out and discarded or used as fuel; that is lignin.”
Courtesy: www.today.uic.edu