– The Conversation – Home – Researchers turned superglue into a recyclable, cheap, oil-free plastic alternative

Researchers discovered a way to turn superglue into strong, clear plastic that can be made into many shapes. Allison Christy, CC BY-NDThe Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work. The big idea Our team used superglue as a starting material to develop a low-cost, recyclable and easily produced transparent plastic called polyethyl cyanoacrylate that has properties similar to those of plastics used for single-use products like cutlery, cups and packaging. Unlike most traditional plastics, this new plastic can be easily converted back to its starting materials, even when combined with unwashed municipal plastic waste. To make a plastic from superglue, we first had to address the very issue that makes superglue so…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://theconversation.com/researchers-turned-superglue-into-an-recyclable-cheap-oil-free-plastic-alternative-202315