Siemens Develops Green Composite Material as an Alternate to ABS Used for Consumer Products
In cooperation with various project partners, Siemens researchers have developed a new recipe for plastic made primarily of renewable resources and CO 2 . The new material is an alternative to standard polystyrene-based acrylonitrite-butadiene-styrene ( ABS ) polymer. The new polymer is much "greener" than ABS even though the physical properties of the two materials are similar. In order to demonstrate how practical the new polymer is, scientists used it to create a vacuum cleaner cover. The new material is the result of a three-year project on research into CO 2 as an ingredient for polymers. The project, which was recently completed, was funded by the German Research Ministry. Until now, plastic has mostly been made from fossil fuels such as natural gas or oil. However, according to experts, plastic will increasingly be made of renewable raw materials in order to improve its environmental performance and conserve resources. Many of these organic polymers are alrea