r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • Feb 20 '21

Chemistry Chemists developed two sustainable plastic alternatives to polyethylene, derived from plants, that can be recycled with a recovery rate of more than 96%, as low-waste, environmentally friendly replacements to conventional fossil fuel-based plastics. (Nature, 17 Feb)

https://academictimes.com/new-plant-based-plastics-can-be-chemically-recycled-with-near-perfect-efficiency/
72.0k Upvotes

93% Upvoted

1.1k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

11

u/03Titanium Feb 20 '21

Gotta love when they made wiring harnesses insulation out of soy based plastic that attracted rodents. Nothing says green like totaling a 5 year old car because of electrical issues.

As far as I know they were able to solve that issue either by a new formulation or going back to old insulation.

2

u/WhereIsGloria Feb 20 '21

That was dismissed in court because the evidence was laughable.

3

u/03Titanium Feb 20 '21

The lawsuit was that Toyota knew about the soy issue and failed to disclose it.

Industry-wide, soy based wiring IS a concern with rodents, but car makers being held accountable for it is up to the courts to decide.