April 2024 Injection Molding Blog
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April 8, 2024
Cj Biomaterials and Beyond Plastic Create the World's First Ever Fully Biodegradable Bottle Cap 
CJ Biomaterials teams up with California-based Beyond Plastic to make the world’s first ever fully biodegradable plastic bottle cap. CJ Biomaterials will provide its patented polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) biopolymers and Beyond Plastic will develop the bottle cap using these materials. These PHA’s are derived from nature and are sustainably sourced. They act as building blocks to boost functional characteristics of traditional plastics but most importantly they offer a range of environmental benefits that help combat the pressing environmental concern posed by traditional bottle caps.  Fred Pinczuk, Beyond Plastic's Chief Technology Officer explained that “utilizing CJ Biomaterials’ PHA biopolymers, we've developed an authentically eco-conscious alternative to conventional plastic bottle caps. This marks a significant leap forward in sustainability, but it's just the beginning." He further mentioned that his company’s aim is to offer tailored PHA formulations for diverse applications, such as straws, caps, and various single-use plastics currently threatening our environment. Once the process is streamlined, it will catalyze a profound transformation within the industry." Learn more about this topic here. 

April 22, 2024
New Process Converts Plastic Waste into Hydrogen at Almost Zero Cost 
Researchers at Rice University made a surprising discovery that would enable the conversion of plastic waste into hydrogen fuel and graphene. Hydrogen fuel in particular has been a common topic of discussion, with many experts claiming that it is an eco-friendly alternative to gas and oil. Hydrogen is an attractive solution because it is storable and because it does not contribute to global warming when released into the atmosphere. However, there is an important challenge to overcome in order to make hydrogen a viable resource to power our society, and that challenge is extremely high costs. Hydrogen has a lot of potential but the process to make hydrogen fuel is extremely expensive and environmentally damaging. But with Rice University's recent discovery hydrogen power may soon become viable. The method developed by researchers converts plastic waste to clean hydrogen, and it does so without generating massive amounts of pollution, something that is common in traditional methods. This not only provides a viable method of creating hydrogen, but it also provides a use for the massive amounts of plastic waste that our society generates. What's more, the scientists also discovered that the process creates hydrogen and graphene simultaneously, a fact that could enable the hydrogen to be produced for free. Lead author of the study Kevin Wyss emphasized that "If the produced graphene is sold at only five percent of current market value — a 95 percent off sale! — clean hydrogen could be produced for free." Learn more about this topic here.