Researchers at Western University have developed a sustainable packaging substitute using a hemp-based biomaterial.
Western chemistry professor Elizabeth Gillies, mechanical and materials engineering professor Aaron Price, and their research teams worked with CTK Bio Canada to develop the new biodegradable material.
“When it comes to packaging, plastic replaces things like metal and glass. Those are heavy and expensive,” said Gillies, who is also the Canada Research Chair in polymeric biomaterials.
The lack of recycling and the global microplastic pollution crisis led Gillies and her team to find a degradable “plastic” to solve the problem.
A release from Western University states that hemp is a sustainable agricultural crop that requires minimal resources to grow.
It’s also a waste product of Canada’s ever-growing cannabis industry, making it a free resource.
In addition, “hemp can have a fibrous structure, which acts perfectly as a reinforcement for materials,” Gillies said. “Basically, hemp is stronger and more malleable than many other biomaterials.”
The goal of the project was to find a substitute for industrial plastics such as high-density polyethylene pellets. Gillies and her team used ground hemp stalk powder to serve as filler.
The new material is not as strong or as malleable as current packaging plastics, but it does exhibit degradability.
In terms of cost, biomaterials are currently more expensive to produce than plastic, but companies are working to reduce pricing, Western said.
It’s expected costs will fall in the coming years as these technologies improve.
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