The renewable and biodegradable properties of transparent wood could make the material a promising and environmentally friendly substitute for glass or plastic.
In a study published in the journal Science of The Total Environment, a team of researchers said transparent wood generates approximately 24 per cent less global warming potential and about 15 per cent less terrestrial acidification than other petrol-based materials.
The research also showed producing transparent wood is five times more efficient than glass.
“Transparent wood as a material can replace the environmentally harmful petroleum-based plastics such as polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), acrylic, polyethylene etc,” said Prodyut Dhar, an author of the study and assistant professor at the Indian Institute of Technology’s biochemical engineering school.
The world currently produces around 400 million tonnes of plastic waste each year, with increasing levels of single-use plastic which...