This Start-Up May Save The World Through Plastic Recycling Using Enzymes
A French start-up is experimenting with active chemicals and natural enzymes to help recycle PET plastic, which is the most widely used form of plastic globally
Natural enzymes may be able to help avert an environmental catastrophe by offering a more refined recycling process. Natural enzymes are catalysts, i.e., they act as modifiers in a chemical process without inserting themselves in the final product.
A French start-up named "Carbios" inaugurated a plant to test natural enzyme's recycling capabilities, which appear to be superior to conventional methods currently in use that are mechanical.
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How enzymes help
The startup's current focus is PET (Polyethylene terephthalate), which is one of the widely used iterations of plastic with uses in clothing, bottling and even tennis balls.
Chemical-based and enzyme-based recycling processes could help create cleaner byproducts after recycling, allowing recycled plastic to be reused more effectively.
Also read: New Reusable Menstrual Pad Cuts Plastic Pollution From Tampons, Single Use Sanitary Pads
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With help from Carbios, recycling clothes and even solar panels could be a reality soon, MIT Technology Review reported. Current ways to recycle solar panels are not cost effective and plagued with wastage. Now, they want to extract silver from solar panels to ensure recycling them is worth it.
According to MIT Technology Review, Carbios' new recycling plant measures 20 cubic metres and can hold two metric tonnes of plastic. In 10 to 16 hours, the plant breaks down the PET plastic into its basic components.
How do they recycle?
It's quite simple. Carbios deploys enzymes to break apart chains of plastic-creating polymers to create monomers. These monomers are then purified to create new plastics. And voila! Recycling successful!
A recent report highlighted how recycling PET using enzymes could help reduce emissions by a maximum of 43 per cent, a report from the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory showed.
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Also read: Researchers Build Eco-Friendly, Recyclable Plastic With Plant Cellulose & Water
If this works out, recycling plastic could be easier, cleaner and more effective. All those Coke and water bottles that are mass manufactured and sold in almost every street in every country could then be recycled to ensure circulation of the same plastic.
Only 15 per cent of all plastics globally are recycled. With chemical recycling processes, the percentage could be increased.
What do you think about using enzymes and chemical processes to recycle plastic? Let us know in the comments below. For more latest news in the world of science and technology, keep reading Indiatimes.com.
I live for all-things-technology - gadgets, novel climate solutions, and startups that are changing the game. In my leisurely hours, you can find me binge watching science fiction films, writing poetry, or dancing to pop anthems.
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