Scientists have developed a new plastic that dissolves in seawater.
The new material was developed at the University of Tokyo, and is non-toxic, non-flammable, and does not generate CO2. However, its most interesting property is that it dissolves quickly in the presence of salt. Salt is, of course, found in seawater, making it possible to rapidly eliminate this particular plastic if it enters the sea.
How fast does it dissolve? The researchers say a sample can dissolve in as little as two hours, so basically immediately. In the ground, it can also dissolve, but at a lower rate due to the smaller amount of salt. They say buried pieces of 50mm length were completely gone after 200 hours.
What does the material decompose into? The report says that when dissolved, it reverts to its original materials, which are not described. However, they can be processed by bacteria. This suggests that complete decomposition does not occur in seawater.
As for the strength of the plastic, the report said it can be used for common plastic applications and is as strong as typical petroleum-derived plastics, such as ABS.
This is very good news. If this type of plastic is used widely, the amount of microplastics entering our environment will drastically decrease — it will simply dissolve. The microplastic problem is growing in significance and will almost certainly become a major issue in coming decades. Anything to combat microplastics is a good idea. Note that PLA, the most common 3D print material used today, is not soluble in seawater.
But is this new material 3D printable? We don’t know yet. The research project simply developed the material, and apparently, there are no plans for commercialization.
However, most thermoplastics can be made into 3D printer filament or pellets, and then it’s a matter of determining the print parameters. Apparently, this material softens at temperatures higher than 120°C.
I’m hoping this material will eventually make its way into the 3D print universe, where it will enable 3D printer operators to much more easily dispose of their growing collections of 3D printed waste. A tub with salt water might be sufficient to deal with waste, and that’s a lot better than sending that waste to the landfill. This might also make for an easy to use support material.
Via Science and SciTech Daily
