Revolutionary Polymer Breakthrough: A Sustainable and Reusable Alternative to Superglue

Adhesives find common application in automotive sectors, packaging, electronics, solar panels, and construction, among various other domains. Collectively, they represent an industry worth about $50 billion that underpins much of contemporary life but also exacerbates the escalating issue of plastic waste. The study details the team’s endeavors using empirical, simulation, and process modeling to devise a substitute polymer.

The initiative was spearheaded by University Distinguished Professor Eugene Chen from the Department of Chemistry. Other contributors to the study include Gregg Beckham from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Professor Ting Xu from the University of California, Berkeley, along with researchers from their teams.

Chen noted that poly(3-hydroxybutyrate), or P3HB, is a natural, bio-based, and biodegradable polymer that can be synthesized by microbes under favorable biological conditions. Although the polymer is not adhesive in its natural state, his laboratory successfully chemically modified its structure to achieve superior adhesion than traditional petroleum-derived, non-biodegradable alternatives when applied to various substrates such as aluminum, glass, and wood. The adhesion strength of the modified P3HB can also be adjusted to meet diverse application requirements.

The discoveries contribute to a broader objective of Chen’s group to enhance and broaden our capabilities to confront the global crisis of plastic pollution. His team engages in various efforts to develop chemically recyclable, biodegradable, and ultimately, environmentally sustainable alternatives to current plastic materials. He mentioned that while many individuals instinctively recognize the life cycle concerns associated with a disposable water bottle, adhesives pose even more formidable challenges with fewer potential solutions.

“Petroleum-based thermoset adhesives like Gorilla Glue and J-B Weld, along with thermoplastic hot melts, are often quite challenging or even impossible to recycle or reclaim — mainly due to their strong bonds with other materials,” he stated. “Our method instead presents a biodegradable material that can be utilized across a range of industries with adjustable or even superior strength compared to those options.”

Ethan Quinn, a Ph.D. candidate at CSU, co-led the authorship of the paper alongside postdoctoral researcher Zhen Zhang. Quinn explained that he and Zhang led the efforts around the creation and evaluation of the material.

“We created a sample P3HB glue stick and successfully utilized it with a commercially available glue gun to assess its application in sealing cardboard boxes and other properties on steel plates,” Quinn remarked. “I was confident the data indicated that it was stronger than alternative options, but I was surprised to see that it considerably outshines typical hot-melt varieties — supporting up to 20 pounds in place versus the 15 pounds that an existing adhesive could not sustain.”

Chen indicated that P3HB is biodegradable under a range of conditions, including both managed and unmanaged environments. This implies it will naturally decompose in landfills as effectively as in salty ocean waters or soil, for instance. This broadens the spectrum of potential strategies for addressing the material at the conclusion of its life cycle. The P3HB adhesive can also be retrieved, reprocessed, and reused.

The CSU team will now embark on efforts to commercialize the polymer for widespread application.

“We are exploring two distinct strategies aimed at mass production, including methods to reduce overall costs and environmental impacts,” Chen stated. “The analysis conducted by the NREL team has pinpointed critical areas for improvement, and we will persist in collaborating with the BOTTLE Consortium on these scaling initiatives.”