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SUMMARY:Making Plastics Fantastic (again) - Professor James Elliott and Dr
  Jonathan Cullen
DTSTART:20210204T180000Z
DTEND:20210204T190000Z
UID:TALK157156@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Dr Nicola Jones
DESCRIPTION:Plastics are one of the defining materials of our age\, from c
 lothing and packaging to vehicles and construction\, and it would be hard 
 to imagine modern living without them. However\, the insatiable growth in 
 their use together with the problems of disposal have made the "Plastics" 
 word awkward to bring up in polite society.\n\nIn this talk\, Professor Ja
 mes Elliott and Dr Jonathan Cullen will outline their plan to rehabilitate
  the reputation of plastics\, and address some of the major problems relat
 ed to their production and recovery after use. Jonathan will start by intr
 oducing the issues in global petrochemical supply chain for fossil-derived
  plastics and mapping of their flow through the economy\, and James will t
 hen describe a new project for making Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging 
 from Plants which aims to supplant the widespread use of fossil-derived pl
 astics with materials made from naturally derived sources\, such as wood (
 cellulose) and plants (sugars). These materials will degrade more easily i
 n the natural environment\, and result in no additional carbon being retur
 ned to the biosphere. By assessing the impact of switching to cellulose an
 d plant-derived sugars\, and making better use of waste products from food
  and forestry industries\, we will explore the trade-offs between the bene
 fits of plastic packaging and the impacts of its production and disposal.\
 n\nTo receive joining instructions\, please register here: https://www.fit
 z.cam.ac.uk/onlineforms/view.php?id=312170
LOCATION:Zoom
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