Executive Summary
A new environmentally friendly process developed at Michigan State University derives clean-use plastics from contaminated Polylactic Acid (PLA). This new method of recycling PLA yields clean-use plastics using inexpensive green solvents and lower temperatures.
Description of Technology
Current chemical recycling of PLA uses toxic solvents at high temperatures to reduce plastics to the lactic acid monomers needed to create clean-use products. MSU researchers have discovered a new method for deriving clean use products from contaminated material. This methodology uses accessible green chemicals and lower temperatures to derive clean-use PLA within 8 days.
Key Benefits
Applications
Patent Status:
Patent Pending
Licensing Rights Available
Full licensing rights available.
Inventors: Dr. Rafael Auras, Fabiola Iniguez-Franco, Dr. Maria Rubino, Herlinda Soto-Valdez, Daniel Holmes, Dr. Susan Selke, Xiaoyi Fang
Tech ID: TEC2017-0009