Browsing by Author "Arndt, Christina"
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Item Restricted Algae bioplastic : relevance, challenges and solutions(2018) Arndt, Christina; Hillmann-Regett, Jan; Krupka, Katrin; Faculty of Architecture and Design; Berlin International University of Applied Sciences"The main research question is whether algae plastic in its current development is a suitable replacement for traditional or crude oil-based plastic. I stipulate that algae plastic can be used to make more sustainable products that have similar if not equal material qualities to non-bio plastic. Plastic is detrimental for the planet and the way we consume it is far beyond careless. Designers and researchers alike have long identified the problem and have put more focus in the last decades on creating sustainable products and working more and more in unison. Lately bio-plastics have become popular in both design applications and research studies, but they have many issues from recycling, to CO2 emissions to sourcing. Most use crops as their base influencing food availability and price. Cultivating algae does not compete with crops as it can grow in specialized bioreactors, or can be directly harvested from the ocean, sometimes even as algae bloom, which is potentially harmful for the environment. Algae and micro-algae are one of the fastest growing natural resources, so once demand rises and there for production methods are more sustainable and economically viable it will be significantly cheaper than crude oil-based plastic. Right now, due to its novelty algae-based plastic is not commercially available to the full extent that it could be. In my research I will determine the challenges and suitability of algae plastic by secondary research, case study and expert interviews and its value for material development in product design. A product development process will determine the stability of algae bioplastic with the help of CAD simulations. The aim is to find a practical and eco-friendly solution-based design innovation replacing a crude oil-based plastic material product with a biopolymer from seaweed, ideally creating a solution that is cradle to cradle, with a strong investigative focus on products for the aquatic environment