California, US – Algenesis has shown that its biobased TPU is biodegradable. The University of California San Diego spin-out said products using the Soleic material will be launched later this year, including injectable plastics and coatings.
There is growing concern about the accumulation of microplastics in the oceans and the ecosytem, and also in the human body. Algenesis said the TPU has the potential to address this, as it rapidly degrades under home composting conditions.
To test its biodegradability, they created microplastics from the material using a belt sander, and studied their degradation behaviour in the natural environment. They found that common soil microorganisms metabolised the TPU fragments into harmless nutrients and carbon dioxide.
RhinoShield will launch a smartphone case made from the new bio TPU material later this year. Algenesis is also working with Trelleborg on coating applications.
“Through a combination of direct visualisation, respirometry, microbiology, and analytical chemistry, our team has demonstrated if or when our Soleic plastics generate microplastics, they will only be transient in nature and will rapidly decompose in the environment, because common microorganisms are capable of biochemically eating them as nutrients,” said Algenesis CTO Ryan Simkovsky. “This has to become the future of all plastics, as we simply cannot continue to pollute our planet and our bodies with microplastics.”
More details about the biodegradation process have been published in the journal Nature Scientific Reports.