Students Make Polymer from Biodiesel, Wine Products

At the Oregon State University, something has been brewing. A team of undergraduate engineering students has discovered that blending byproducts from biodiesel production and winemaking produces an environmentally friendly polymer that could one day replace polystyrene foam meat trays in supermarkets.

The students delved into combining glycerin, a byproduct of biodiesel production, and tartaric acid, a byproduct of wine production. They have produced a material that was moldable, though somewhat tacky, which vaporizes at 600 degrees. This may be the prototype of ash-free particle board and fire logs. “Producing biodiesel produces a lot of glycerin,” said David Hackleman, a Linus Pauling Chair at OSU School of Engineering. "Now it seems that even the waste from green industries can be put to another good use – one that can help in the solution to a global problem.”

Read the news release at http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ncs/newsarch/2007/May07/polymer.html.