Researchers Create High-Temperature Stable Hemp Plastic
Researchers at the University of Connecticut (UConn) and Purdue University have developed a non-toxic hemp plastic derived from CBD. The study, published last month in the journal Chem Circularity, demonstrated a stretchy, hemp-derived thermoplastic that can extend up to 1,600% of its size with a high “glass transition temperature,” which allows the alternative plastic to stay dry and durable when coming into contact with boiling water.
It is the first time a hemp-based polycarbonate material has shown high-temperature stability and melt processability at this scale.
In a statement, Gregory Sotzing, one of the study authors and a UConn Department of Chemistry professor, said that “very few, if any, plastics made from natural resources have [the glass transition temperature] quality.”
“Current day polycarbonate is made from bisphenol-A, a known endocrine disruptor. The hope here is that cannabidiol can take the place of bisphenol-A found in today’s processed plastics.” — Sotzing in a statement
The hemp-derived plastic could replace common materials made from petroleum-based materials such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), including transparent films, coatings, water bottles, food packaging, and substrates for flexible electronics.
Author Mukerrem Cakmak, of Purdue University, said the research establishes “CBD-based colycarbonates as sustainable replacements for widely used thermoplastics such as PET.”
“We have developed a rigorous processing science framework that links molecular architecture to melt processability, orientation development, and stretchability without compromising manufacturability,” Cakmak said in a statement.
Sotzing noted that the plastic can be easily recycled chemically with a base and without enzymes, and that the CBD could be recovered in the recycling process.
The researchers note that there is not currently enough CBD being produced worldwide to fully replace PET for plastics, but that hemp could be cultivated solely for this purpose.