We are aware of the large amount of plastic waste that is produced daily, and that its main impact is the little or almost null capacity to degrade naturally in the environment, so many researches are oriented to look for biodegradable alternatives to replace the harmful synthetic plastics of fossil origin. In this regard, a group of researchers from the University of Cordoba has achieved a breakthrough by using wheat straw as a raw material for the production of polyurethane foam.
Wheat straw is an abundant and inexpensive agricultural residue, ideal for this application. Image from pixabay.com.
On the other hand, millions of tons of this agricultural residue are produced every year, so it would be a sustainable way to produce this important plastic, also known as foam rubber, which is widely used in the construction and vehicle industry as a sealant and thermal insulator, and which is generally obtained from petroleum-derived compounds.
The results of this research, which were recently published in the journal Polymers, could give a boost to biodegradable plastics in these segments and to the use of these wheat residues, from which, through a liquefaction process, polyols were synthesized, molecules that are indispensable for the production of polyurethane foam.
Polyols are the essential molecules for the production of polyurethane foam. Image designed by 
The synthesized product showed excellent properties for the proposed application, which could replace the castor oil currently used as a possible sustainable raw material in the formulation of polyurethane foams, but the problem with this vegetable oil is that it does not offer a fast and complete hardening, something indispensable to bring a product to the market. And through this method of preparation of polyols, the morphology of the foams obtained had a compact and ordered structure, very desirable parameters for this application, in addition, the foams showed excellent biodegradability.
That is why in this research they proposed to replace at least 50% of the castor oil with wheat straw, obtaining results with characteristics very comparable to the products obtained by conventional methods that use non-renewable raw materials, with levels of biodegradability far superior to any product of this type that can be found in the market.
So, although these types of foams have very well defined application segments, by observing this biodegradability rate, the researchers suppose that a large number of new applications could arise, they propose that it could be used as a support for plants growing in nurseries. The important thing is to obtain biodegradable substitutes for conventional plastics in all sectors where they are used, in order to replace them and contribute to a reduction of pollution by this type of products.
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