A ‘green’ alternative to commonly used glass is on its way: thanks to amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, of biological origin and then modified in the laboratory, it is now possible to manufacture recyclable and biodegradable glass. The result, published in the journal Science Advances, is due to research coordinated by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and would eliminate the environmental cost due to the disposal of this material.
Glass is ubiquitous in nature and essential to human life, but traditional glass is not easily degraded in nature. Several attempts to produce an ecological glass of biological origin had already been made in the past, but they all stalled in the face of the main obstacle of the production process: the molecules of biological origin are not stable and decompose easily at the high temperatures typically used in the manufacture of the glass.
To solve this problem, researchers led by Yan Xuehai have tried to modify the structure of amino acids and other similar molecules in the laboratory, in order to make them more resistant and, at the same time, obtain a material with the desired ecological properties. Thanks to this innovative technique, the glass obtained shows a unique combination of functional properties and ecological characteristics: it has excellent optical characteristics (such as transparency), good mechanical properties and is also flexible during processing, as well as being biodegradable and recyclable.
“The concept of ‘bio’ glass could open the door to green technology for a more sustainable future,” comments Xuehai. “However, we are still in a laboratory stage, far from large-scale commercialization”.
Source: Ansa
I am a journalist with over 6 years of experience working in the news industry. I currently work as an author for Global Happenings, and my coverage focuses on Technology news. I have written for various publications, including Reuters, The New York Times and The Guardian.
