Science

Chinese scientists have created glass that can break down in the body

Around the world, almost 40 million tons of glass are produced every year. In theory it is an easily recyclable material, but in practice less than a third of it is recycled. The rest is transported to landfills and accumulates in huge quantities due to high inertness.

Currently, many scientists are looking for ways to produce environmentally friendly transparent materials, such as wood. Scientists of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have proposed their solution to this global problem. They have developed a technology to produce "biomolecular" glass, which rapidly degrades in nature.

Amino acids and peptides are used to obtain such a substance . Their powder is heated in an inert gas atmosphere to a temperature above the melting point, but not to the point where the molecules break down. The mixture is then cooled to form a supercooled liquid. At the end, water is added to it, as a result of which the substance turns into a non-crystalline solid state.

The authors note that the resulting material has not only good optical properties, but also processing flexibility, which allows it to be used in 3D printing. At the same time, thanks to the organic composition, this glass breaks down quickly. Experiments have shown that it degrades under natural conditions from three weeks to 7.5 months, depending on the amino acids and peptides used.

Furthermore, the new material has been tested on animals, showing that it breaks down in mice without any noticeable health damage. Scientists believe this will allow the use of "biomolecular" glass as part of temporary medical implants or targeted drug delivery devices.