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posted by takyon on Tuesday November 27 2018, @06:44PM   Printer-friendly
from the snap,-crinkle,-and-poop dept.

The University of Nottingham:

Using a special technical approach, the team is working on plastic films derived from konjac flour and starch, cellulose or proteins that are fully edible and harmless if accidentally eaten by people or animals—unlike health issues associated with microplastics and other plastic waste that make their way into the food chain.

The researchers have found that plant carbohydrate and protein macromolecules bond together into a special network structure during the film-forming process. The network structure provides the film with a required mechanical strength and transparent appearance for the film to be used as packaging materials.

The idea is to reduce incidence of plastic in the environment.


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  • (Score: 2) by suburbanitemediocrity on Tuesday November 27 2018, @07:07PM (4 children)

    by suburbanitemediocrity (6844) on Tuesday November 27 2018, @07:07PM (#767000)

    It is 100% biodegradable and almost 100 years old.

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  • (Score: 5, Informative) by takyon on Tuesday November 27 2018, @07:47PM (2 children)

    by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday November 27 2018, @07:47PM (#767012) Journal

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellophane [wikipedia.org]

    Cellophane sales have dwindled since the 1960s, due to alternative packaging options. The polluting effects of carbon disulfide and other by-products of the process used to make viscose may have also contributed to this; however, cellophane itself is 100% biodegradable, and that has increased its popularity as a food wrapping.

    [...] Cellophane is biodegradable, but highly toxic carbon disulfide is used in most cellophane production. Viscose factories vary widely in the amount of CS2 they expose their workers to, and most give no information about their quantitative safety limits or how well they keep to them.

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    • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Tuesday November 27 2018, @07:57PM

      by bob_super (1357) on Tuesday November 27 2018, @07:57PM (#767016)

      Similar to my question about this one then :

      > from konjac flour and starch, cellulose or proteins that are fully edible and harmless

      The problem with the word "from" is that the base properties don't necessarily apply to the "into", or the process.
      Oil is made from biodegradable and often healthy products, but plastic made from oil ...

    • (Score: 4, Funny) by legont on Tuesday November 27 2018, @08:15PM

      by legont (4179) on Tuesday November 27 2018, @08:15PM (#767026)

      Similar to solar pannels, the production can be outsourced so we enjoy clean environment.

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  • (Score: 2) by captain normal on Tuesday November 27 2018, @08:01PM

    by captain normal (2205) on Tuesday November 27 2018, @08:01PM (#767019)

    It's still around. I remember it as the main packaging for stuff like crackers and candy until companies started to use the plastic film from dead dinosaurs in the late 50's and early 60's. It is rather stiff and hard to reuse so fell out of favor against cling wrap and plastic bags.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellophane [wikipedia.org]

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