Packaging made from wood pulp and invasive exotic pests

Researchers at the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have measured the best wood-to-pest ratio for the design of new composites. The material could soon be used in a wide variety of applications, including food packaging.
They combined derivatives of two surplus materials—wood pulp and dried-up pieces of an invasive exotic pest—to form a new composite material that is flexible, nontoxic and UV light-reflective. They mixed pulp with the carcasses of a dried-up aquatic creature called a tunicate that is considered a pest in some countries and a treat in others. An article about the research is published in Advanced Functional Materials (News Item NIST, 4 May 2018).
Click here for the news item.
Click here for an abstract of the published article.

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