Breakthrough: Transparent biodegradable material holds boiling water, degrades in ocean

In humanity’s never-ending quest to reduce pollution, scientists have devised a biodegradable plastic replacement that is clear, shapeable, and can hold boiling water. And the best part? It disintegrates in less than a year after settling on the ocean floor.

As it happens, a team of biomaterial engineers, environmental resource specialists, and industrial design researchers affiliated with institutions across Japan has put their heads together to develop this environmentally friendly material, publishing their work in the journal Science Advances on April 9.

Specifically, according to the report, the material is paper-based, transparent, and biodegradable, and can hold liquids for several hours, even at higher temperatures, making it a strong alternative to plastic cups, straws, and other objects. It can also be as thin or thick as required.

Making of the transparent biodegradable scalding water-holding material

To produce the material, which the researchers described as tPB – a transparent 3D material made entirely of cellulose – they used a standard cellulose hydrogel, dried it, and treated it with an aqueous lithium bromide solution, which allowed the cellulose to harden into desired shapes.

So far, tests have demonstrated it works as well as standard drinking straws, minus the signs of collapse in paper straws after longer use. Although cups from this material leaked a little after three hours, the problem disappeared by adding a plant-based resin coating.

In terms of biodegradability in a marine environment, tPB takes less than 12 months to degrade completely in the deepest parts of the ocean, where cold temperatures would otherwise hinder materials’ degradation. As for recyclability, it is simple, but the material becomes less transparent.

Meanwhile, until tPB becomes commonplace in our everyday lives, there are ways to reduce your exposure to microplastics, including filtering your tap water, minimizing single-use plastics, reducing shellfish consumption, regularly dusting and vacuuming, avoiding plastic tea bags, choosing natural fabrics, and watching the food packaging.