This biotech startup uses methane-eating bacteria to create fully biodegradable polymers.
Mango Materials is a biotech startup from San Francisco that has come up with an ingenious method for transforming methane, a potent greenhouse gas, into plastic. The process involves feeding methane to bacteria, which then produce a biodegradable polymer (polyhydroxyalkanoate, or PHA). This polymer can be spun into polyester fabric and used for clothing, carpets, and possibly packaging, although the company is most focused on the garment industry right now.
The methane used by Mango Materials comes from a waste treatment plant in the Bay Area, but the company is looking at partnering with other sources of methane, such as dairy farms, in order to get more. The technology creates value for methane, which is a novel idea.
How long would it take to fart a sweater — are we talking one burrito, or two?
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday October 07 2017, @10:07PM
You didn't mention that the fiber is more durable than any traditional fiber.
...or that hemp grows faster than any other fiber crop.
...or that hemp will grow damned near anywhere.
...and that at one time farmers were encouraged to grow it [google.com] (before the racist anti-drug laws, starting in 1937--where the name of the stuff they were vilifying they didn't even spell properly).
Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 [wikipedia.org]
-- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]