Scientists Made Plastic Using Lemon Extracts And CO2. Could This Be A Plastic Revolution?
plastiquarian
Some countries like France, Denmark and Turkey have banned the use of BPA in the production of baby bottles. “BPA is safe, but still causes concerns and is produced from petroleum feedstock,” Kleij said.
“Our approach replaces it with limonene, which can be isolated from lemons and oranges, giving us a much greener, more sustainable alternative,” he said.
indiatimes
The researchers not only succeeded in producing a more environment-friendly polymer, but they also managed to improve its thermal properties. This limonene-derived polymer has the highest glass transition temperature ever reported for a polycarbonate. Having a high glass transition temperature has other implications – the new plastics require higher temperatures to melt, which make them safer for everyday use. Moreover, this new polymer can also offer a myriad of new applications for polycarbonates and block copolymers using appropriate material formulations.
This article appeared on the India Times website at http://www.indiatimes.com/technology/science-and-future/scientists-made-plastic-using-lemon-extracts-and-co2-could-this-be-a-plastic-revolution-326023.html]]>