"Biodegradable starch-based plastics may not be as safe and health-promoting as originally assumed," says Yongfeng Deng, the corresponding author of the study. Microplastics (plastic pieces less than ...

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Biodegradable plastics are sold as a simple fix for a world drowning in packaging, but the reality is far messier than the marketing suggests. Labels that promise bags, cups, and utensils will ...

There are no great solutions to the problem of throwaway plastics. They can clog up landfills for centuries, or get dumped into rivers and break down into toxic microplastics. Incineration produces ...

Fossil fuel-based plastics take hundreds, if not thousands of years to biodegrade, leading to an urgent demand for biodegradable plastic alternatives. Plastics may be a villain in Earth's very own TV ...

Several new projects turn waste into food for microbes that create PHA, a type of plastic that fully decomposes on its own, offering a less costly alternative to current bioplastics. This fork made of ...

Plastic pollution is a major threat to human survival, with more than six hundred thousand tons of plastics on Earth. 2 In an effort to reduce the concentration of conventional plastics, scientists ...

Microplastics have emerged as a major environmental concern, prompting growing public awareness and increasing regulatory pressure. In response, industries are turning to biodegradable polymer ...

Plastic pollution is one of the most defining environmental challenges of our time. Despite efforts to recycle or responsibly dispose of plastic, vast garbage patches in the oceans continue to grow, ...

This bag of tomatoes is made from the new plant-based plastic that uses FDA-approved ingredients. Watch as the bag completely dissolves in artificial seawater after just a few hours, without leaving ...

When plastic was first introduced in 1907, it was hailed as a miracle material. The petroleum-based substance could seemingly do anything — harden into a rock-solid car part or a flexible waterproof ...

Switching to biodegradable plastics could slash toxic pollution by more than a third and dramatically reduce global waste by mid-century but only if cities and companies invest in the right disposal ...