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Soy proteins are utilized in plant-derived natural polymers intended to ultimately replace plastic substances. However, to rival petrochemical-derived products, such polymers must be more robust and less fragile.
Scientists at Washington University in St. Louis have formulated a technique to achieve that, detailed in a study published in the journal Polymer Composites. Marcus Foston, a professor of energy, environmental, and chemical engineering at the McKelvey School of Engineering, spearheaded the investigation. Foston, who also directs the Synthetic Biology Manufacturing of Advanced Materials Research Center, examines ways to convert biomass waste into valuable chemicals and materials.
An instance of biomass waste is cellulose, the most prevalent natural polymer globally. Researchers can extract cellulose nanocrystals from microfibrils derived from various plant origins, and these nanocrystals provide effective scaffolding for bioplastic materials, but their performance can improve. In this research, the team discovered they could enhance the nanocomposite characteristics of this substance by altering the surface interactions of the nanocrystals. By applying a surface coating of polydopamine, a molecule inspired by the adhesive proteins found in mussels, the team successfully increased the tensile strength and flexibility of the nanocomposites by over 300%.
This study acts as a proof of concept that naturally sourced materials such as cellulose and soy protein can be optimized to more effectively rival traditional plastics.
Wang Z, Li H, Hanxun Jin, Senanayake M, Pingali SV, Goldberg W, Kobayashi D, Guy Genin G, Foston M. Tuning Sustainable Nanocomposite Interphase Behavior Through Surface Modification of Cellulose Nanocrystals. Polymer Composites (2025) https://doi.org/10.1002/pc.70050
This research was funded by the National Science Foundation via awards DMR 2105150, CMMI 1548571, and OIA 2219142. A section of this work received support under the funding to the Center for Structural Molecular Biology (CSMB) under Contract FWP ERKP291, Office of Biological and Environmental Research, U.S. Department of Energy.
The article Strengthening soy for better bioplastics first appeared on The Source.
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