22.09.2024 Are China’s vast bamboo forests the answer to forever fossil plastics?

Chinese researchers say technique to ‘remodel’ the tall grass into plastic substitute could produce eco-friendly utensils, hats, phone cases.

A team of Chinese scientists on a quest to develop bamboo into a biodegradable alternative to plastics say they have discovered a recipe to process the material into feasible products.
China – which has more bamboo forests than any other country – is in the midst of a long-term effort to reduce pollution and reach carbon neutrality and has been looking for ways to transform the tall, thick grass into a viable replacement for petroleum-based goods that can decompose. Plastic pollution has become a critical global concern, and the very slow biodegradation of traditional plastics has led to alarming accumulations of plastic waste in soil, waterways and even human bodies.

“Bamboo, known for its rapid growth, renewability, biodegradability, and eco-friendliness, is regarded as a promising substitute for plastics,” the researchers wrote in a paper published in the American Chemical Society’s peer-reviewed journal ACS NANO on August 20th.

Source: South China Morning Post