Conventional food packaging materials are generally petroleum-based non-biodegradable polymers such as PET, PE, PP, PS etc. These materials could take up to 500 years to degrade in the natural environment. My research seeks an alternative to single-use plastic packaging and cellulosic fibres extracted from plant biomasses have a significant potential for this.
This bottle was developed from a plant-based material called cellulose, extracted from agricultural biomasses such as wheat straw, miscanthus grass, and switchgrass. This bottle was designed to use for juices or liquid foods by making it hydrophobic due to a thin layer of lamination with polylactic acid film. The whole packaging system is biodegradable in nature.
