Brazil uses sucrose to produce biodegradable plastic

According to local media reports, the Institute of Technology of the University of São Paulo, Brazil, and the Institute of Biomedicine and the Sugarcane Ethanol Cooperative of the St. Paul region collaborated to ferment sugar using alkaline natural strains to produce polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB), which is a polyhydroxyl fatty acid. A polymer of the PHA family has physical and mechanical properties similar to those of synthetic resins, ie, polypropylene, and can be rapidly degraded without contamination, which is a great benefit to the environment.

They implemented the São Paulo R&D Academy Small Business Innovation Research Project, with the assistance of scientists from the Federal University of San Carlos, to develop technologies for the production of small cylindrical pellets of a mixture of polyhydroxybutyrate and natural fibers. It is a raw material that can be used to produce plastic tableware.

Blending polyhydroxybutyrate with plant fibers can reduce costs. Polypropylene costs about $2 per kilogram and polyhydroxybutyrate is about $5 per kilogram. If mixed with wood chips, it reduces product costs and gives the product special properties.

Polyhydroxybutyrate is a solid raw material that can be used for the production of hot injection products, such as bottle caps, pens, toys, food boxes and cosmetic cases, etc. It can also be pressed into thin plates and fiberboards to meet the needs of the automotive industry; It can also produce foam plastics.

It takes 100 years for traditional plastics to degrade. Products made from polyhydroxybutyrate can decompose in as little as 12 months, releasing only water and carbon dioxide.