How scientists hope to solve the problem of world plastic pollution

Scientists have accidentally developed a destructive plastic enzyme that can be used to combat one of the most serious pollution problems in the world.

Фото: Depositphotos

Researchers from the British University of Portsmouth and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory of the US Department of Energy (NREL) made this discovery while studying the structure of a natural enzyme found several years ago at a recycling center in Japan, writes CNN.

According to researchers, the enzyme Ideonella sakaiensis 201-F6 is able to "eat" polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which in the 1940-ies was patented as plastic and used in millions of plastic bottles.

The goal of scientists was to study its structure, but they accidentally created an enzyme that even better copes with the task of destroying PET.

The discovery could solve the problem of recycling millions of tons of plastic bottles, which are currently stored in the environment for hundreds of years, leading to pollution.

The resulting enzyme can accelerate the decomposition of polyethylene furandicarboxylate, or PEF, which is also used for the manufacture of bottles, mainly beer.

PEF is based on biocomponents, but, nevertheless, it does not undergo biodegradation and still, falling into landfills and into water leads to environmental pollution.

This enzyme does not lead to complete and rapid destruction of plastic, but it significantly speeds up the process, and scientists hope that they will further improve these substances.

According to NREL, 8 of millions of tons of plastic waste, which creates huge artificial islands out of garbage, enters the oceans every year.

According to experts, by the year 2050 there will be as much plastic waste in the ocean as there are fish.

According to a three-year study published in Scientific Reports in March 2018 of the year, a huge pile of garbage in the Pacific Ocean, known as Great Pacific Garbage Patchis growing faster than expected, and now its area is three times the size of France.

Now plastic waste makes to all the beaches of the world.

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