Microbes in cow stomachs may help our plastic problem

Re:Microbes in cow stomachs may help our plastic problem by rmason on Sunday July 04, 2021 @07:20PM (#27733413)

There's already a solution out there and that's plastic made from corn that's biodegradable. But it has a couple disadvantages:

1. It's more expensive

2. Plastic bags aren't smooth and have a slightly rough texture

3. Plastic can't be made shiny and has a dull look

There is a new generation of folks trying to make a biodegradable plastic chemically without using corn:

https://fortune.com/2021/06/30/emma-watson-twitter-co-founde...

However from what I read it's far from mass production:

I've asked people in the know can the plastic made from corn be improved? Modern plastic made from corn (PLA) technology is over twenty years old. To their knowledge no one is working on it. They said it was a hard problem. My personal opinion is that it's a problem worth working on.

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Re:Microbes in cow stomachs may help our plastic problem by jazzyjackson on Sunday July 04, 2021 @11:07PM (#27734315)

PLA also has a very low temperature threshold before it loses integrity and starts to deform, can’t use it for anything that would see direct sunlight.

If you want it to compost it’s by definition going to start breaking down at about 130-140 degrees F

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