Nature , one of the most prestigious scientific journals in the world, devoted its "front page" this Thursday to a technology developed by the French company Carbios to recycle PET, one of the most common plastics, by biological pathway.
The green chemistry group based in Clermont-Ferrand has developed a technology to break down PET into its basic components using "gluttonous enzymes", explained the Toulouse Biotechnology Institute (Insa Toulouse / Inrae / CNRS), which co-signed the article.
A patent soon filed
In April 2018, American and British researchers had already received the honors of the scientific press with a publication on the use of enzymes to degrade plastics. Carbios then indicated that his research was much more advanced, but said that his priority was then to protect his technology with patents, before considering publication in a leading scientific journal.
The technology of Carbios and the Toulouse scientific institute makes it possible to decompose 90% of PET in ten hours. The raw materials thus recovered can be used to manufacture new PET.
A major ecological advance
This is a major advance in the circular economy, since PET (polyethylene terephthalate) is one of the most widely used plastics in the world, especially for the manufacture of bottles and polyester fibers.
The Carbios and Toulouse institute method is 100 times more efficient than the competing methods announced so far, which "illustrates the strength of French public / private collaboration in bringing fundamental and applied research to the best international level" , welcome the two entities in a press release.
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