Since February 2020, the <a href="https://www.aimplas.es/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Aimplas</a> Plastics Technology Institute has worked on the BioICEP (Bio-Innovation of a Circular Economy for Plastic) research project, together with other technology centers from different European countries and China. The objective focused on the development of sustainable alternatives to conventional plastic, made from petroleum, for use in the packaging and pharmaceutical sectors. <h4 style="float: right; width: 50%; margin-left: 28px; padding: 0 28px; border-left: 2px solid #0095dd; font-size: 19px;"> The solution is based on three technologies that accentuate, accelerate and increase the degradation of plastics</h4> Aimplas, in addition to developing different technologies for the project, has also been in charge of coordinating the dissemination and exploitation of the results obtained, as well as communication activities. These days have presented the achievements. The solution proposed in the BioICEP project is based on the use of three technologies that “accentuate, accelerate and increase the degradation of plastics to levels much higher than those that can be achieved today. It treats of a system of depolimerización of triple action that will decompose the plastic residues by means of three consecutive processes";, explain from Aimplas. <img style="margin: 10px; float: left;" src="https://api.techpress.es/image/1692864432266-El-proyecto-BioICEP-AIMPLAS-interior.jpg" width="336" height="252" /> The first focuses on chemical disintegration processes , including a new microwave-based technology to reduce the molecular weight of base polymers to facilitate biodegradation. The second, biocatalytic digestion with enzymes improved by different innovative techniques, including screening through fluorescent sensors and directed evolution. And, thirdly, they indicate in the technological center, “ microbial consortia developed from the best individual strains that, combined, carry out highly efficient degradation of mixed plastic waste streams. The products of this degradation process will be used for the synthesis of new polymers or other bioproducts to enable the circular economy of new plastics from waste”.<h2> The contribution of Aimplas</h2> The innovative cascade process that has been developed through the application and combination of chemical and biological methods to transform plastic waste of fossil origin into its natural and biodegradable substitutes delegated to Aimplas the prior treatment of plastics through microwave-assisted thermochemical degradation. Through this innovative technology, the researchers at this technology center have managed to transform non-biodegradable plastic waste, such as low-density polyethylene waste, into easily biodegradable materials, which also completely degrade in less than 28 days . <h4 style="float: right; width: 50%; margin-left: 28px; padding: 0 28px; border-left: 2px solid #0095dd; font-size: 19px;"> Other technologies based on reactive extrusion allow introducing changes in the structure of the polymer chains to facilitate biodegradation</h4> In addition, they have also developed a polyamide depolymerization technique, obtaining the monomers of these polymers that can be used by microorganisms to convert them into other products of interest, such as bioplastics; as well as other technologies based on reactive extrusion ";that allow introducing changes in the structure of the polymeric chains to facilitate the biodegradation of these plastics";, they explain from the technology center. The development of these processes that will reduce the amount of plastic waste in the environment is being carried out with the collaboration of thirteen partners from nine European and Asian countries ; experts in different areas of knowledge, which has allowed us to have a solid multidisciplinary team. In addition to Aimplas, Acteco (Spain), Avecom (Belgium), Technische Universitat Clausthal (Germany), Institut za Molekularnu Genetiku i Geneticko Inzenjerstvo (Serbia), Institute of Experimental Biology ETecnologica and Logoplaste Innovation Lab lda (Portugal) have participated in the project. , Technological University of The Shannon and The Provost, Fellows, Foundation Scholars &amp; The other members of Board of The College of The Holy &amp; Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth (Ireland), Microlife Solutions (Netherlands), National Technical University of Athens – Ntua (Greece) and Beijing Institute of Technology , Institute of Microbiology - Chinese Academy of Sciences and S handong University (china). The BioICEP project is funded by the European Union within the framework of the Horizon 2020 program, topic CE-BIOTEC-05-2019 &#39; Microorganism communities for plastic bio-degradation&#39; , agreement number 870292.

Through the BioICEP project , the Aimplas technology center, together to another 12 research centers in Europe and China, have managed to develop a chemical and biotechnological pre-treatment that makes it possible to convert non-biodegradable plastic waste into bioplastics that are for the packaging and pharmaceutical sectors . To achieve this, methods based on microwaves and reactive extrusion have been applied.

Aimplas develops new pre-treatments to recycle plastics

Aimplas develops new pre-treatments to recycle plastics