Paper

While we use around five trillion plastic bags every year, disposable alternatives aren't that much better. A group of scientists, however, want us to rethink the humble paper bag, making it super strong, durable and a handy source of biofuel.

Although it's always best to reuse and recycle, many small, simple, low-power electronic devices tend to be single-use. A new paper battery could make them more eco-friendly, as it's activated by water, and it biodegrades once discarded.

Anyone who uses a smartphone will be familiar with NFC technology, which is used for such things as contactless payments. To demonstrate the versatility of the technology when combined with printed circuitry, Prelonic has created the Paper Piano.

In most grocery stores, all of the fresh produce is either pre-wrapped in plastic film or it gets placed in plastic bags – both of which are often discarded by consumers. A new bioactive paper bag, however, could serve the same purpose while being easily recyclable.

Taking inspiration from the way sea cucumbers can strengthen their exterior when in danger, scientists in Germany have developed a novel wafer-thin paper material that can transition from firm to soft via an electrical switch.

A typical sheet of paper or cardboard is neither waterproof, interactive or able to harvest energy, but an innovative new printing technology developed at Purdue University can make it all of the above.

When you think of papier-mâché, school art projects and carnival floats may come to mind, but a team of architects has used strips of recycled paper and non-toxic glue to create pair of simple prototype shelters in rural Texas.

The first PowerUp kit added an electric propeller to paper planes. Well, the latest version reportedly allows all sorts of things to fly.

Throughout the densely-populated country of Bangladesh, a lack of access to clean drinking water is responsible for a variety of debilitating and often-lethal infections. Soon, however, residents could filter virtually all harmful microbes out of their water, using paper derived from algae.

​With a few notable exceptions, the majority of objects removed from a 3D printer bed are fashioned with plastic. But plastic has a nasty habit of ruining our environment at the end of its useful life. Beer Holthuis has built a 3D printer that extrudes paper pulp to build three-dimensional objects.​

​Scientists from Carnegie Mellon University have done something interesting to plain ol' paper. They've coated it with patterns of a conductive thermoplastic, which causes the paper to bend, fold or flatten in response to an electrical current.

Engineers from Georgia Tech and Korea University have developed a new supercapacitor that’s designed to store more energy for longer – and it’s made out of ordinary paper, meaning it’s flexible enough to power wearable electronics.