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Environmental Business Review | Wednesday, January 29, 2025
Bournemouth University researchers created self-repairing plastic using MXene nanosheets and a healing agent miming nature’s process. This durable plastic restores 96 percent of its strength in minutes, reducing waste and offering potential in electronics and packaging.
FREMONT, CA: A team of researchers at Bournemouth University has developed plastic that can mend itself after cracking or breaking into pieces, collectively known as self-repairing plastic, to reduce plastic waste.
The team’s method is similar to Mother Nature's healing process in that it works with plastics like blood solidifies to cover a cut until the skin tissue seals it. Employing nanosheets of MXene, a substance that seems to be powder to the unaided eye and is used in industry as a reinforcing agent, the team created a healing agent with glue-like qualities by adding chemicals to the MXene. Like a gel, the healing agent remains dormant until the plastic breaks and is exposed to airborne humidity, which begins to work to mend the damaged areas. The goal was to build plastics that are more difficult to break and would heal themselves if it does break.
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Most commonplace objects are made of plastic. Their approach can prolong the life of various goods, including plastic pipes, cell phones, reusable drink bottles, and much more, ultimately reducing waste.
The combination of MXene and its healing agent produces more rigid plastic that is more resilient to breaking but can also mend itself if it does. The plastic can be restored to 96 percent of its original strength in just a few minutes. Building on this capacity for self-healing, researchers at Bournemouth University are working on projects to create new gadgets that can fix themselves over time.
The team has developed and tested new sensors to detect human movements and repair themselves after damage. These ideas open the door to next-generation electronics with minimal or no maintenance, increasing lifespan.
Researchers at the University of Konstanz first exposed a self-healing mineral plastic that could be produced and repaired in water to biobased building blocks in 2023. This action was expected to improve the original plastic created in 2016 by guaranteeing its environmental degradability.
More recently, developing plastic packaging that can be composted at home at room temperature has become another aim.
With the development of self-repairing polymers, the future holds the potential of a world where plastics are more robust and environmentally friendly as scientists continue to improve these discoveries.
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