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#7 Russian student develops bioplastic in home lab amid COVID-19 pandemic

In Russia, a student at the National University of Science and Technology MISiS has made a bioplastic from gelatin and sawdust. Valeria Solovyova, who is pursuing a master’s at NUST MISiS’s Technologies and Materials for Digital Production program, created the material using wood waste, gelatin, glycerin, and water. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, she had to adapt the process to work in her home lab.

“The idea came about by accident when I noticed a large amount of sawdust that remains from the milling machine (FlexiCAM) in our FabLab,” Solovyoya tells QSWOWnews. “I came up with the idea that this is a good organic filler and you can mix it with something, study the properties, see if it makes the material stronger. Of course, using sawdust from plywood cut on a milling machine is not the best option because of the contained glue and formaldehyde, but finding a new use for sawdust as a massive waste of woodworking became an interesting task for me. In my work I used clean coniferous sawdust.”

Many other organic fillers, including coffee waste, nutshells, and plant fibers, could also be used in place of saw dust, she adds.
More on the story, here.