In India, the National Institute of Ocean Technology has converted seaweed into biodegradable plastic film.
Using red algae Kappaphycus alvarezii cultivated from the Gulf of Mannar and plasticizer polyethylene glycol (PEG)-3000, the team was able to create films with high tensile strength. The films also have good oxygen and moisture permeability properties for use as food packaging and shopping bags.
K. alvarezii is ideal because it does not require freshwater and has a short cultivation time of just 6-7 weeks, the team tells weather.com. It is also a commercial source of carrageenan.
The work was led by Muthiyal Prabakaran Sudhakar, Dhassiah Magesh Peter and Gopal Dharani from Ocean Science and Technology for Islands, Marine Biotechnology at NIOT and was published in a recent issue of Environmental Science and Pollution Research.