Page 60 - Plastics News September 2019

TECHNOLOGY

Ultra-white beetle scales hold 30& LQDXJXUDWHV LWV ¿UVW SODVWLF
secret to creating sustainable to-fuel project

paint from recycled plastic
ukta Tilak, Pune mayor inaugurated Pune Municipal
he structure of ultra-white beetle scales could M&RUSRUDWLRQ·V 30& ÀUVW SODVWLF WR IXHO SURMHFW LQ
Thold the key to making bright-white sustainable the city at Ghole road. Tilak said, “Pur O Fuel Pvt Ltd
paint using recycled plastic waste, scientists company invested Rs 3.5 crore in the project, which
at the University of Sheffield have discovered. is indigenous and will promote the ‘Make In India’
scheme.” The mayor said that Pune is facing a tough
Cyphochilus beetle scales are one of the brightest whites task in garbage management as 1,700 to 1,800 metric
in nature and their ultra-white appearance is created by tonnes of garbage is generated in the city every day.
the nanostructure in their tiny scales, as opposed to the Considering the increased burden of waste generation
use of pigment or dyes.Experts have now been able to after merger of additional villages within PMC limits,
recreate and improve on this structure in the lab using low WKH FLYLF ERG\ LQ ÁRDWHG D WHQGHU IRU VHWWLQJ XS
cost materials -- via a technique which could be used as a a plant for generating fuels from plastic waste in the
sustainable alternative to titanium dioxide in white paint. city through corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds
of a private company. According to PMC, the plant can
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Department of Physics and Astronomy, who led the process four tonnes of plastic waste every day. The
research, said: "In the natural world, whiteness is usually civic body aims to generate 1,700 litres of fuel from
created by a foamy, Swiss cheese-like structure made of a plastic collected in the city. In their bid to get the best
solid interconnected network and air. Until now, how these out of waste, PMC has decided to turn plastic waste
structures form and develop and how they have evolved
light-scattering properties has remained a mystery.

"Having understood these structures we were able to
take plastic and structure it in the same way. Ideally, we
could recycle plastic waste that would normally be burnt
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and then use it to make super white paint. This would
make paint with a much lower carbon footprint and help
tackle the challenge of recycling single-use plastics."

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scales had the right proportion of empty spaces, which optimise into ‘refuse-derived fuel’ (RDF) which consists largely
the scattering of light -- creating the ultra-white colouring. of combustible components, such as non-recyclable
plastics, paper cardboard, labels and other corrugated
To measure the tiny individual beetle scales, researchers materials. These fractions are then separated at various
used a technique called X-ray tomography, which is similar processing steps, in order to produce a homogeneous
to a CT scan but on a miniscule scale. The scientists used material which can be used as substitute for fossil fuels.
the X-ray imaging facilities at the instrument ID16B at Dnyaneshwar Molak, chief, solid waste management
the European Synchrotron Research Facility (ESRF) in GHSDUWPHQW 30& VDLG ´:KLOH WKH HQWLUH FRVW RI
Grenoble, France.Dr Stephanie Burg, a PhD researcher at operations was incurred by the company, PMC provided
WKH 8QLYHUVLW\ RI 6KHIÀHOG VDLG 7KLV UHVHDUFK DQVZHUV ORQJ space for the establishment of the plant, concretising,
standing questions about how the structure inside these water and electricity connection. At least 1,460 tonnes
scales actually form and we hope these lessons from nature of plastic will be treated in this plant on a daily basis
will help inform the future of sustainable manufacturing eventually.”
for paint."The team also used the instrument Larmor
at the ISIS Spallation Neutron Source, which measured According to Molak, the project will be operational in
the nanostructure of the synthetic whites they made. the next 4-5 months.

Plastics News September 2019 6062