Plastic from…Bacteria.

No, this isn’t fringe science.  This is real and is happening now, and it is the business of Genomatica, a chemical company based in San Diego, focusing on the bio manufacturing of sustainable chemicals.  In a process similar to biofuel creation, through the fermentation and manipulation of E. coli bacteria (along with sugar and water), Genomatica has developed a petroleum-free incarnation of butanediol (BDO), a versatile chemical compound common to a range of plastic products.  Noteworthy, is the company’s intent to utilize particular kinds of sugars which do not threaten the scarcity of foodstock-based sugars on world markets.  The company chose to initially focus on BDO due to the dramatically increasing cost and energy-intensive nature of its fossil-fuel based production, and because it is such a ubiquitous product within the world of plastics.

If the company can indeed develop a cost-competitive plastic from their more environmentally friendly approach, they will have proven the viability of potentially large-scale non petroleum-based manufacturing solutions.  According to Genomatica’s own brief on how the company views sustainability, “… government, academia and industry should strive to maximize resource efficiency through activities such as energy and non-renewable resource conservation, risk minimization, pollution prevention, minimization of waste at all stages of a product life-cycle, and the development of products that are durable and can be reused and recycled.”  It’s hard to beat that, so we should all keep our eyes on the work of Genomatica, for we might be seeing some great things emerge from this company in years to come.

Genomatica

From ReUse to ReGlow

In the vein of inventive reuse, industrial designer Shelley Spicuzza has created a versatile and attractive globe lamp called ReGlow, with the aid of used PET bottles.  The lamp is configurable as a hanging pendant, desk or table lamp, as well as a dramatic floor-to-ceiling lamp, with multiple units fixed along a tall aluminum pole.  What makes ReGlow interesting is it’s simple central element, made from a two-part clear plastic sphere with holes arrayed around it, which allow the user to secure the bottles by placing their necks through the holes and then screwing their caps back on inside the sphere.  With its ease-of-access, the sphere allows one to replace  bulbs as well as even the bottles themselves, in order to achieve an array of color schemes depending on the color of the bottles at hand.  Straightforward in design, this lamp helps us imagine the potential reuses of the standard PET bottle, an unfortunately under-recycled product.

How ECO2 Plastics Turns Our Idea of “Washing” on its Head

Although recycling plastics contributes a great deal to the effort to reduce waste and dependence on landfilling, and must become standard practice by society in general (we’re not there yet), the process does have one big downside, and that is water use.  What many people may not realize is that the recycling of plastic requires vast amounts of water for cleaning and other processes, amounting to billions of gallons every year.  With this challenge in mind, not to mention the increasingly strict water use policies in place in the State of California, Gary De Laurentiis, a world-renowned plastics recycling industry expert, founded ECO2 Plastics, and in turn, began to utilize an industry-changing process.

Referring to the process as “eco.logical.recycling”, the San Francisco-based company, along with Honeywell, has developed a method by which to clean plastic PET bottles using an FDA-approved biosolvent at a stage when typical plants use a great deal of water.  The solvent is then distilled to remove sugars and glues, and sequestered for ongoing reuse, at the same time that carbon vapors captured from power plants (an additional benefit of the process) are then converted into liquid CO2 form, which serves as the “bath” in the final stages of the process.  Once the FDA approves the resulting recycled plastic as food safe, the company will then be able to offer it for reuse in beverage containers.  Although ECO2 currently only utilizes PET, which is the most consumes plastic in the U.S. by volume, the company may soon work with HDPE bottles as well as ASR (auto shredder residue) from the auto industry, which will help reduce waste even further.  According to CEO Rod Rougelot, ECO2’s Riverbank, California plant will be joined by another plant to go online within a year, and the company hopes to introduce its waterless process to countries such as India and others, which have water crises even more dire than those in California.

ECO2 Plastics

The Eco-Friendly Keg Party!

The infamous disposable plastic cup that has been a mainstay of college campuses around the country has finally received a much needed overhaul. The Solo Cup Company has just announced a launch of their first ever use of recycled content in a disposable cup for wide spread sale.

Solo’s Bare™ line of disposable plastic cups is made from 20 percent post-consumer recycled polyethylene (PET) plastic. According to Steve Jungmann, Solo Cup Company senior vice president of consumer sales and marketing, “Sustainability is an ongoing priority for Solo and for our consumers. Our Bare products deliver environmental benefits with all the performance, strength and style consumers expect. We are committed to providing alternative choices in convenience tableware while reducing our own footprint on the world’s environment.”

The Release of Solo’s Bare™ line of sustainable products is a step in the right direction for the disposable tableware industry. Not only are these cups made from recycled plastic, but they themselves can be recycled anywhere plastic bottles are accepted.

Although there is still a lot more that can be done in this industry, Solo has provided the weekend picknicker, or partygoer with more sustainable alternatives than ever before. Cheers to that!

www.barebysolo.com

As Goes Oil, So Goes Plastic

With daily headlines proclaiming the dramatic rise in oil prices and the inevitability of “Peak Oil”, consumers are being forced to dramatically alter their driving (and flying) habits, and if a recessionary economy takes hold, manufacturers may have to scale back oil-dependent production lines.  Although such trends may actually lead to a decrease in oil prices down the road, there is no consensus among economists and oil industry experts that that would happen.  In the meantime, apart from a more costly commute, the effects of oil’s rise are visible in gradually rising prices for goods, as manufacturers seek alternatives to petroleum-based sources for plastic, and alternative fuels for their operations.  For example, Goodyear has made a move to natural rubber as an alternative to oil-based synthetics for their tires, but because of the rise in commodities such as natural rubber, have had to raise prices by 15%.  This is just one example of many, which spell out the financial pressures that many manufacturers are facing, and how an across-the board rise in product prices (inflation) may be in the offing.

(Courtesy National Geographic Magazine)

An article in the April 2006 issue of National Geographic Magazine approaches this issue quite effectively, and includes some striking images, such as a two-page spread of a family’s lawn strewn with an array of everyday products made from petroleum-based plastics.  The actual print article is worth a look because the image above does not quite do the dramatic justice of spelling out how oil-dependent design and manufacturing have become.  With this dire discussion however, comes the potential that PLA and other natural (bio-based) raw materials may someday supersede petrol-based plastics, thus aiding the transition to the low-impact industrial economy we must create in order to make the world more sustainable in the long run.  Although this transition may not be altogether smooth, as companies frantically compete for natural and/or recycled material sources, the result will be a stronger and potentially more equitable economy based on less oil dependency, waste, and toxicity, and greater life-sustaining innovation.

Please visit the following links for more information:

New York Times article Oil Prices Raise Cost of Making Range of Goods

Excerpt from National Geographic Magazine’s The End of Cheap Oil

Association for the Study of Peak Oil & Gas

U.S. DOE Energy Information Administration

U.S. DOE Energy Information Administration’s Oil Market Basics

U.S. DOE Office of Petroleum Reserves

Mirel Bioplastic by Metabolix

The public knows the basic about bioplastic. What is actually produced with such plastics ? As designers it’s good to know who to contact, when we actually need to develop a project with such product, i would like to present Mirel, produced by Metabolix a 15 years old company specialised in bio plastic research.

What is Mirel ?

A family of plastic based on corn sugar. Its biobased sustainable and biodegradable.

When we see (- Plastic debris piling up in Pacific - ) what happen to our tons of plastic it’s urgent to go for biodegradable.

What can be done with Mirel family ?

Mirel can be used in a wide variety of applications, from packaging, to cosmetic cases, from plastic bags to toothbrushes.

it’s support injection molding, extrusion coating and could be provided as sheet.

Mirel is well documented in ecolect database, have a look, register and share your knowledges with the community.

For more information on Mirel properties, check Metabolix presentation on their website.
Mirel bioplastic slideshow