A robust, recyclable, and biodegradable whole corn bioplastic enabled by dissolution-regeneration strategy

Abstract

Biomass-based plastic, derived from renewable and biodegradable resources such as plant materials, offers a promising solution to mitigate the severe energy and environmental issues caused by petroleum-based plastics. While challenges remain in addressing complex and costly processing produces, as well as improving mechanical properties and water resistance in bioplastic production, these factors hinder the widespread application of bioplastic. Herein, we proposed a facile and cost-efficient method to prepare high-performance bioplastics from whole corn by dissolving it in a green metal salt solution system (ZnCl₂/AlCl₃ system) to deconstruct into a homogeneous and viscous precursor slurry, and then regenerating it from ethanol to form a dense hydrogen and ionic crosslinking network. The prepared whole corn-based bioplastic has a uniform and dense structure, exhibiting excellent mechanical properties (78.5 MPa), water stability, thermostability, and recyclability. Owing to entirely biomass-based components and their effective processes, bioplastic is biodegradable and has low environmental impact. This strategy provides an avenue for the scalable production of large-scale production of high-performance, environmental, renewable, and biodegradable bioplastic, thus demonstrating a promising alternative for reducing the consumption of petroleum resources.