Scientists Have Discovered Microorganisms That Can Digest Plastic At Low Temperatures
Scientists from the Swiss Federal Institute WSL have discovered microorganisms that can digest plastic at low temperatures. They live in the Alps and in the Arctic.
Scientists have grown 34 cold-adapted microbial strains in Greenland, Svalbard and Switzerland. They were cultivated on fragments of plastic of various types, placed in the soil for a long time.
“Cold-adapted microorganisms produce enzymes that are active at low temperatures (0-30°C). They are very useful in industrial processing, as they can save energy and costs by eliminating the heating stages,” the experts explain.
They tested the effects of micro-organisms on various types of plastics – Impranil polyester-polyurethane, partially biodegradable plastic based on polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT) and polylactic acid (PLA) Ecovio, low-density polyethylene (commercial waste bags), pure polymer PLA and PBAT in the form of granules, as well as plastic BI-OPL (mulch film) and others.
The microorganisms used were of different types: ten Actinobacteria bacterial strains, nine Proteobacteria bacterial strains, 13 Ascomycota fungal strains, and two Mucoromycota fungal strains.
It turned out that at 15 ° C, eight bacteria and 11 fungi were able to “digest” polyurethane, and 14 fungi and three bacteria – PBAT and PLA. All of them could not decompose polyethylene. Neodevriesia and Lachnellula mushrooms showed the greatest efficiency in relation to all types of plastic, except for polyethylene. The Antarctic strain Pseudogymnoascus showed a higher efficiency in the decomposition of polyester-type polymers at a temperature of 14°C than when heated.
