A biodegradable plastic made from isolated carbon and oxygen
In recent years, the desire to emulate botanical processes for environmental benefit has inspired design similes such as cities that behave like forests, buildings that act as trees, or products that operate like plants. Although such comparisons serve to promote ideal goals, they are difficult to put into actual practice.
California-based Newlight Technologies has found a way to achieve the latter objective, with a plastic that is made by mimicking the material production method of plants. AirCarbon is a type of polyester that is made from air rather than oil. Like plants, Newlight’s “GHG-to-Plastic” process captures CO2 from the air and isolates the carbon and oxygen elements. The company then polymerizes C and O and reassembles them into a long-chain thermopolymer. The resulting plastic is biodegradable, recyclable in multiple stages, and has programmable compostability.
According to Newlight, AirCarbon’s environmental benefits are matched by its economic advantages. The company has partnered with KI to produce the first industrially-produced carbon-negative chair, which was on display at Greenbuild 2013. “By using carbon that would otherwise be in the air we are breathing right now, AirCarbon turns everyday goods into products that actually improve the environment,” said Newlight CEO Mark Herrema in a KI press release. “Combined with a cost profile that is more favorable than oil-based plastics, AirCarbon has the potential to change the world.”
Contact: Newlight Technologies, Inc., Huntington Beach, CA, USA.
