Plastic waste

Twenty-one-year-old backyard scientist Julian Brown nukes plastic trash in a homemade microwave pyrolysis reactor, turning bags and bottles into a chunky sludge he refines into a gasoline alternative he calls "plastoline."

Scientists at RIKEN in Japan have developed a new type of plastic that’s just as stable in everyday use as regular plastic, but dissolves quickly in saltwater, leaving behind only safe compounds.

Back in 2022, the strange-looking prototype igus:bike rolled into the spotlight boasting an angular frame, funky wheels and even bearings made using recycled plastic. Now the newly-named RCYL bike is riding into production.

UK shipyard MMS has added a new member to its fleet of floating-debris collection vessels. The latest Envirocat is the first to clean up waterways without releasing engine fumes into the environment.

Researchers have harvested hydrogen from waste plastics using a low-emissions method. They say it not only solves environmental problems, but the value of the graphene by-product could offset the costs of producing hydrogen.

For all its uses, plastic is unfortunately one of our least sustainable materials. Now, scientists at Berkeley Lab have developed a way to engineer bacteria to produce raw materials that can be made into plastics that are completely recyclable.

We may soon be finishing off a box of cereal and then eating the bag it came in. Researchers have turned to bacteria-produced cellulose to create a single-use packaging material that is sustainable, biodegradable and, what’s more, edible.

Newly discovered cold-adapted microorganisms "eat" plastic at temperatures lower than currently required. The discovery is the first step towards developing a more effective industrial-scale method of ridding the planet of plastic pollution.

Polypropylene is one of the most commonly used plastics but there are problems when it comes to recycling. Researchers have developed a new way of breaking down this troublesome plastic by enlisting the help of a couple of common fungi.

Plastics are made to last, which is great while they’re being used but not so great after they’re discarded. Chemists have now developed a new kind of plastic that has all the durability of regular plastic, but biodegrades within months or even days.

Plastic waste is one of the most pressing environmental problems of our time. Now, engineers at MIT have developed an effective new catalyst that breaks down mixed plastics into propane, which can then be burned as fuel or used to make new plastic.

In a bid to reduce the environmental burden associated with both the manufacturing and disposal of plastics, scientists have demonstrated a new upcycling technique that turns one common form of it into another.