Simplifying hospital waste with biodegradable disposables
Dealing with hospital waste can be a logistical nightmare. But some believe that if medical centres switched to bio-based and biodegradable disposable products, they could simplify their waste management and see other benefits, such as a lower carbon footprint and a reduction in hospital acquired infections. The problem of hospital waste Hospitals generate huge amounts
Omega-3 fatty acids produced from corn by marine algae
Omega-3 fatty acids have attracted a lot of attention from protagonists of healthy diets, and from the food industry as well – view their ads. Fatty fish like salmon and sardines are important natural suppliers of these substances to the human diet. But an increasing share of fish comes from fish farms; and much of
Much choice in biobased materials at Material Xperience
The 13th Material Xperience, ‘the world’s largest multisectoral materials exhibition’, will take place 13-15 March in Ahoy, Rotterdam. Tuned towards materials innovation, it will show materials in six categories: architecture, interior, fashion & workwear, product, mobility and graphic & packaging. In each category, there are many biobased materials. New biobased materials ‘Materials innovation is essential
The many faces of hemp
The ecological properties of hemp makes it one of the types of insulation used in construction with the lowest carbon emissions footprint. A relatively recent interest in hemp as a building material responds to a global trend that encourages the development of bio-based products and the reduction of carbon emissions. But its use dates back
Seaweed biorefinery: much work, high hopes
After an initial period in which ideas went in all directions, proponents of seaweed (macro-algae) in the bio-economy have now set down to the painstaking work of developing and fine-tuning their technologies. Single-product facilities, like for the production of biogas or proteins, have effectively been abandoned. It is now generally recognized in the sector that
Genetically engineered spider silk
Whereas the two companies discussed in this series so far use fermentation technology to imitate silk, the American company Kraig Biocraft Laboratories uses the old workhorse, the silkworm. They introduced spider genes into the silkworm in order to arrive at products much like spider silk, stronger than common silk. They claim their genetically engineered spider
Artificial spider silk, imitating ‘the toughest material on earth’
Spider silk combines properties that are very difficult to achieve for man-made materials. It is claimed to be 340 times stronger than steel; we are also told that a net woven from spider silk threads 1 cm thick would be able to stop a Boeing 747 in full flight. And yet, spider silk is just
Artificial silk: the next biotechnological frontier, about to be crossed
For a long time, silk has figured as a proverbial example of nature’s skills: strong and breathable, and soft to the skin as no man-made material could achieve. But we are about to cross this border: artificial silk has been synthesized, or at least materials very close to it; it may come to the market
