On October 7th the details of a study were posted onto nature.com. It was about a newly discovered use for bamboo that is very promising. It has qualities that make it very similar to many commercial plastics that are on the market. It might even be better than what we have now. The plastic has been labeled by the creators BM-plastics.
This new material has many advantages over regular plastics, such as durability of both pressure and temperature, biodegradability, and even how well it recycles. The plastic can survive much higher pressures than regular plastics which could be very useful in many situations. BM-plastic is also extremely resistant to heat as it can survive temperatures of up to 356 degrees Fahrenheit. The best part about this new material is that it can degrade into the soil in just 50 days, and when recycled it will retain 90% of its original strength, which is considered a closed loop recycling process.
There are a few drawbacks to the BM-plastic which means it will most likely not get rid of the use of other plastics. It is less flexible which in turn means it can not be put into as many unique shapes like common plastics. Furthermore it will most likely be more expensive than regular plastic as it is not mass produced anywhere. It is also possible that may not like a change if it were to occur similar to paper straws being introduced.
Personally I believe that if this BM-plastic was to become more widespread I would not be opposed to it. Alternatives like paper straws caused many people to be upset as they were much worse than the plastic variety, but in this case I think that there could be a different reaction as this BM-plastic should theoretically be better than normal plastic in almost every way. It’s possible that this BM-plastic could become the new norm and I think that would be great.
