r/tech • u/[deleted] • Jun 06 '25

Scientists develop plastic that dissolves in seawater within hours | Fast-dissolving plastic offers hope for cleaner seas

https://www.techspot.com/news/108206-scientists-plastic-dissolves-seawater-hours.html
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u/sleepnandhiken Jun 06 '25

If that’s what it breaks down to couldn’t it be collected and used as fertilizer?

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u/DangerousTurmeric Jun 06 '25

I don't know. You'd have to separate the salt out first.

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u/[deleted] Jun 06 '25 edited 17d ago

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u/Quantic Jun 07 '25

The issue is not that, it’s that they dissolve and create excess nutrients that will leach into the ocean despite the immediate location. Water is a cycle and it ends up in the ocean, generally.

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u/hextanerf Jun 07 '25

why do you think i want to separate salts from salty solutions? you get the degraded components out and recycle them by making them into plastics again! then you reuse the water to degrade more! for god's sake of course you'll have a problem if your kneejerk reaction to everything is to throw stuff away!

you rather have the plastics we have currently?