Plant from plastics: Bio-based polymers can be transformed into fertilizer

 

Morea Gjocaj

11/3/21

Mr.Ippolito

Current Event 7

 

Tokyo Institute of Technology. "Plant from plastics: Bio-based polymers can be transformed into fertilizer." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 28 October 2021. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/10/211028093248.htm 

 

            The article "Plant from plastics: Bio-based polymers can be transformed into fertilizer." written by a team of scientists at the Tokyo Institute of Technology explains how bioplastics can be recycled into beneficial fertilizers, paving the way for the cure to world hunger, better food quality, a healthier environment, and much more. Plastic is everywhere, and we use it everyday. Although it’s convenient and useful for everyday use, it’s truly harming the planet. Therefore, scientists in Tokyo developed a new, environmentally friendly process where they chemically recycled bioplastics into fertilizers. “The team focused on poly (isosorbide carbonate), or ‘PIC,’ a type of bio-based polycarbonate that has garnered much attention as an alternative to petroleum-based polycarbonates.”. It’s a non-toxic material derived from glucose called ISB that acts as the monomer. The carbonate links that can be seen combining the ISB units can serve as ammonia in the process “ammonolysis”. The urea made in the process can be used as a fertilizer, and it’s a very common one. Despite the success, the PIC failed to degrade within 24 hours. This discovery led the scientists to increase the temperature and they found that it degraded faster. Dr.Aoki states that "The reaction occurs without any catalyst, demonstrating that the ammonolysis of PIC can be easily performed using aqueous ammonia and heating. Thus, this procedure is operationally simple and environmentally friendly from the viewpoint of chemical recycling.". To further prove the fact that the PIC can be used as fertilizers, the scientists conducted plant growth experiments. They discovered that the plants that were treated with PIC degradation products grew much better than the same plants that were treated with only urea. All in all, the results of the experiments conducted in order to produce these beneficial fertilizers showed that they pose a great role in the ecosystem and are truly a great discovery.

            This discovery has a great impact on society and the role it plays in nature. These new fertilization systems can not only help fight off pollution, but they can also contribute to solving the modern problem of world hunger and the world’s increasing food supply demands. The work done by these amazing scientists at the Tokyo Institute of Technology represents “a milestone toward developing sustainable and recyclable polymer materials in the near future.”, as Dr.Aoki concludes. This discovery was not only beneficial, but also truly amazing.

            Overall, the article was very well written. It was very informative and interesting to read. I do however wish that it included more quotes from the scientists who were conducting these experiments since it would add some insight and really allow the reader to comprehend what is occurring from the perspective of the scientist. Despite this, it was a truly astonishing article and I look forward to updating my knowledge on this certain topic.