Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 24, 2025

Isolation of Native Soil Microorganisms with Potential for Breaking Down Biodegradable Plastic Mulch Films Used in Agriculture
Published on: May 10, 2013
Bottlenecks in biobased approaches to plastic degradation
Amelia R Bergeson1, Ashli J Silvera1, Hal S Alper2,3
1McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA.
Abstract:
Plastic waste is an environmental challenge, but also presents a biotechnological opportunity as a unique carbon substrate. With modern biotechnological tools, it is possible to enable both recycling and upcycling. To realize a plastics bioeconomy, significant intrinsic barriers must be overcome using a combination of enzyme, strain, and process engineering. This article highlights advances, challenges, and opportunities for a variety of common plastics.
Related Concept Videos
Types of Step-Growth Polymers: Polyesters
Polyesters are commonly prepared from terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol; the crude product is known as poly(ethylene terephthalate) or PET. However, polyesters are synthesized industrially by transesterification of dimethyl terephthalate with ethylene glycol at 150 °C. The two reactants and the...
Bioremediation
Plastic Behavior

