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UK developing biodegradable hulls
01 Feb 2007
The UK is on its way to developing car doors, boat hulls and baby capsules manufactured from super-strong, lightweight plastic made from plant products, which harmlessly biodegrades at the end of its life, says a government report published last month.
The Department of Trade and Industry is providing £278,000 funding towards the £777,000 Combine project to develop plastics durable enough for car doors and boat hulls, which are light-weight, but environmentally friendly, led by UK futuristic bio-plastic developer, NetComposites.
‘Normal plastics have a half-life of thousands of years,’ said Malcolm Wicks, minister for science and innovation. ‘The plastics being created in this project will be strong and lightweight, but will be made from plants, which means they'll eventually and be composted into harmless plant products.’
The 2½ year, £715,000 project will manufacture and test an industrial safety helmet and prototype a car front-end. This is also being part funded with a Technology Programme grant from the DTI of £316,000.
A spin-off company, Aptiform, has already been created to supply components from these new types of plastic materials.
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