🥽Scientists have created a couple years ago a cocktail of plastic-eating enzymes that can decompose plastic in only a few days, which usually takes hundreds of years.
🧪This cocktail includes PETase and MHETase. These are produced by a type of bacteria that feeds on PET plastic (often found in plastic bottles).
🥽PETase attacks the surface of the plastics and MHETase chops things up further, so they make a great combination.
🧪Apart from PET, the enzyme can also help in degrading PEF or polyethene furoate that are found in beer bottles. Sadly these are the only two kinds of plastic it can degrade.
🥽However, this is a great start and scientists say that they're going to try more combinations to fastly degrade other plastics.
🥽Scientists have created a couple years ago a cocktail of plastic-eating enzymes that can decompose plastic in only a few days, which usually takes hundreds of years.
🧪This cocktail includes PETase and MHETase. These are produced by a type of bacteria that feeds on PET plastic (often found in plastic bottles).
🥽PETase attacks the surface of the plastics and MHETase chops things up further, so they make a great combination.
🧪Apart from PET, the enzyme can also help in degrading PEF or polyethene furoate that are found in beer bottles. Sadly these are the only two kinds of plastic it can degrade.
🥽However, this is a great start and scientists say that they're going to try more combinations to fastly degrade other plastics.