06 Feb 2024 --- Scientists at King’s College London, UK, have developed a way to chemically recycle single-use bioplastics commonly used in disposable items such as coffee cups and food containers. The approach is 84 times faster than the 12-week-long industrial composting process used for recycling bioplastic materials, say the chemists. The method, published in Cell Reports Physical Science, uses enzymes typically found in biological laundry detergents to “depolymerize” — or break down — landfill-bound bioplastics. Rapidly converting the items into soluble fragments within 24 hours, the process fully degrades bioplastic polylactic acid (PLA). Dr. Susana Meza Huaman, a researcher on the project at King’s College London, says: “Our research marks the first step in developing new technologies in waste management for recycling bioplastics that are of equal quality to the virgin product.”
