塑料为社会带来了许多好处，并在我们的日常生活中广泛使用：它们轻巧，便宜且适应能力。但是，塑料的生产，加工和处置根本不可持续，对环境和人类健康构成了重大的全球威胁。
Eco-friendly processing of reusable and recyclable plastics derived from plant-based raw materials would be an ideal solution. So far, the technological challenges have proved too great. However, researchers at the University of Göttingen have now found a sustainable method - "hydrosetting", which uses water at normal conditions - to process and reshape a new type of hydroplastic polymer called cellulose cinnamate (CCi). The research was published inNature Sustainability。
Plastics are polymers, meaning that their molecular structure is built up from a large number of similar units bonded together. Currently, most plastics are manufactured using petrochemicals as raw materials, which is damaging to our environment to both extract and dispose of. In contrast, cellulose, which is the main constituent of plant cell walls, is the most abundant natural polymer on earth, constituting an almost inexhaustible source of raw material. By slightly modifying a very small portion of the chemistry of cellulose by introducing a "cinnamoyl" group, the researchers succeeded in making a specific CCi that is suitable for the formation of a new type of bioplastic with hydroplastic (ie soft and mouldable on contact with water) polymers.
这意味着它可以在日常温度和压力下使用水比水更重要。这种独特的方法（称为氢化方法）使研究人员仅通过将生物塑料浸入水中并使其在空气中干燥而产生各种形状。成型的形状长期保持其稳定性，可以一遍又一遍地重塑各种2D和3D形状。尽管塑料不应用于直接与水接触 - 因为它会失去其形状 - 它可以容纳水并在潮湿条件下使用。与当前广泛使用的塑料相比，CCI生物塑料具有高质量的机械性能。
“我们的研究提供了一种可行的方法，可以从可再生资源中设计其他环保的水型水平，”哥廷根大学的凯张教授解释说。“这应该开辟新的研究途径，刺激对具有优越的机械性能和新功能的其他可持续生物塑料的进一步探索。”
The hydrosetting process avoids expensive and complex machinery and harsh processing conditions. This eco-friendly method highly simplifies plastics manufacture, making their processing and recycling more economical and sustainable.“这项研究为这样的生物塑料提供了巨大的潜力“张在补充说：“特别是，塑料对环境的有害影响（对地球上的各种生命都损害的环境）将通过重复使用其独特特征来最大程度地减少。”
Original publication: Jiaxiu Wang, Lukas Emmerich, Jianfeng Wu, Philipp Vana and Kai Zhang, "Hydroplastic polymers as eco-friendly hydrosetting plastics" 2021,Nature Sustainability, DOI: 10.1038/s41893-021-00743-1. Or see the website:https://www.nature.com/欧洲杯猜球平台articles/s41893-021-00743-1
Source:https://www.uni-goettingen.de/en/1.html