World Industrial Reporter

Innovation Delivered Daily

  • Innovation
    • Innovation Article Archive
    • Innovative Companies
    • Innovation Strategies
    • New Equipment Innovations
  • New Products
  • Additive Manufacturing
  • Markets
    • Market Trends
    • Tradeshow Reports
    • White Papers
  • Logistics
  • Newsletters
World Industrial Reporter » Innovation » UNSW Creates Biodegradable Plastic from Banana Plant Waste

UNSW Creates Biodegradable Plastic from Banana Plant Waste

December 3, 2019

banana 141 2

Two UNSW academics have proposed a new ingredient – banana plantation waste – for creating packaging plastic that is not only biodegradable, but also recyclable.

Associate Professor Jayashree Arcot and Professor Martina Stenzel were looking for ways to convert agricultural waste into something when they thought about a banana waste-based material.

According to Arcot, the banana growing industry produces large amounts of organic waste, with only 12% of the plant being used (the fruit) while the rest is discarded after harvest.

“What makes the banana growing business particularly wasteful compared to other fruit crops is the fact that the plant dies after each harvest,” says Arcot.

“We were particularly interested in the pseudostems – basically the layered, fleshy trunk of the plant which is cut down after each harvest and mostly discarded on the field. Some of it is used for textiles, some as compost, but other than that, it’s a huge waste.”

Using a reliable supply of pseudostem material from banana plants grown at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Arcot and Stenzel set to work in extracting cellulose to test its suitability as a packaging alternative.

According to Arcot, the pseudostem is 90% water, so the solid material ends up reducing down to about 10%.

Once brought into the lab, the pseudostem is chopped into pieces, dried at very low temperatures in a drying oven, and then milled into a very fine powder.

The powder is finally washed with a very soft chemical treatment, notes Stenzel: “This isolates what we call nano-cellulose which is a material of high value with a whole range of applications.”

“One of those applications that interested us greatly was packaging, particularly single-use food packaging where so much ends up in landfill.”

According to the scientists, when processed, the material has a consistency similar to baking paper and can be used in a number of different formats in food packaging.

And unlike foam, the new material is completely non-toxic, biodegradable and recyclable.

Image and content: UNSW Sydney

Share on

Filed Under: Innovation

Spin Wave-Based Switching Saves Electronics from Overheating
VTT Creates a Unique, Movable Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electrolyzer

About Aruna Urs

Aruna is an industrial journalist. He writes on innovations that emanate at the intersection of science and engineering having a profound impact on the manufacturing sector.

Follow me
Suppliers

Capacitive Displacement Measuring System for Industrial Applications

The capaNCDT DT61x0/IP is an industrial-grade, capacitive sensor system for displacement, distance and position measurements. It detects parameters such as displacement, distance, deflection, expansion, and deformation of conductive targets. Calibrated at the factory, the system is immediately ready for use.
View Supplier Email this Supplier

The Path to Lubrication Excellence

Lack of lubricant can cause premature bearing failure, but did you know over lubrication is also a common cause of damage?  This informative e-book provides valuable information for reducing bearing failure through ultrasound condition based lubrication practices.  
View Supplier Email this Supplier

One Click to the Analytics Dashboard

At SPS 2019 exhibition Beckhoff will show how to achieve these dramatic time savings. Where previously several hundred clicks and work steps were required for HMI design, the new TwinCAT Analytics One-Click Dashboard (OCD) now reduces this process to a single click.
View Supplier Email this Supplier

UHF Reader Platform for IIoT

Turck has expanded its RFID portfolio with the UHF reader series Q300 with Ethernet interface - with 2 W power, connections for external antennas, I/Os for triggers and signals as well as Codesys. With their platform and interface diversity, the read/write heads open up completely new fields of application.
View Supplier Email this Supplier

High Accuracy, Non-Contact, Absolute Linear Sensor

Santest Model GY series are high accuracy, non-contact, absolute type linear sensors employing magnetostrictive, Wiedemann effect. An ultra-sonic wave generated by a moving magnet near a magnetostrictive wave-guide on which the sonic wave propagates to the head of the transducer.
View Supplier Email this Supplier

Subscribe

Get the latest WIR reports straight to your inbox.

Free Newsletter Subscription

Find us on the social web.

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Terms Of Use
  • Privacy Policy
FREE NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIPTION

Get the latest WIR reports straight to your inbox.

  • Innovation Article Archive
  • Innovation Strategies
  • Innovative Companies
  • New Products
  • Additive Manufacturing
  • Market Trends
  • Tradeshow Reports
  • White Papers
  • Logistics
  • Newsletters
  • Fun Stuff
  • Industry Links
Follow us

© 2019 Thomas Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site you agree.OkRead more