Billions of tons of plastic waste clutter our world. Most of it has accumulated on the ground and in the oceans or disintegrated into tiny particles known as microplastics that pollute the air and the water, penetrating vegetation and the bloodstreams of humans and other animals. The scope of the danger posed by plastics grows with each passing year, since they are made from massive molecules, known as polymers, that do not readily biodegrade. Currently, biodegradable plastics make up less than one-fifth of the total amount of plastic produced, and the processes needed to break them down are relatively cumbersome.
In an effort to combat this global crisis, Weizmann Institute researchers have created an inexpensive, biodegradable composite material. The industrial potential is massive. Read more here.
