Doctoral candidate Mariette Gibier wins prize for her Green Bioplastics project
Mariette Gibier, a doctoral candidate at the Laboratoire de Biologie Computationnelle et Quantitative of the Institut de Biologie Paris-Seine (Sorbonne University/CNRS/Inserm), won first place in the Ocean & Innovation category of the Fondation Maud Fontenoy's Climate & Biodiversity Awards for her Green Bioplastics project. The project is the result of cooperation between the R&D and packaging teams at Pierre Fabre Laboratories and the biofoundry at Sorbonne University Alliance, where Mariette's work is based.
Can you give us a brief overview of the Green Bioplastics project?
Mariette Gibier: Green Bioplastics aims to produce bioplastics from microalgae, which can then be used to manufacture packaging for all kinds of products. We are working in collaboration with Pierre-Fabre laboratories to design them.
Microalgae are capable of capturing carbon dioxide and transforming it into bioplastics. Like plants, they photosynthesize, enabling them to fix atmospheric or industrial CO2 in their biomass.
The term "bioplastic" covers a wide range of polymers. I should point out that we are developing bioplastics that are both biosourced and biodegradable.
Where are the microalgae grown for this project?
M.G.: We cultivate algae at the biofonderie and collaborate with the Observatoire océanologique de Banyuls, which is also a partner of the Pierre-Fabre laboratories. If the project develops, we could also strengthen this collaboration with other Sorbonne University marine stations.
You mention a more environmentally-friendly method of producing bioplastics. How does it compare with traditional methods?
M.G.: Our method significantly reduces the carbon footprint compared with traditional methods using petro-sourced plastics or sugar-fed bacteria.
Once the bioplastic has served its purpose, it can be biodegraded by microorganisms in a matter of months or years, unlike conventional plastics, which persist in the environment for thousands of years, causing widespread pollution.
So the main difference between your bioplastics and conventional plastics is that they are biodegradable?
M.G.: That's right! Microorganisms can digest the carbon trapped in these bioplastics and reuse it. Conventional plastics from the petrochemical industry, on the other hand, are ultra-resistant and fragment into microplastics, leading to long-term pollution of soil and oceans.
Another major difference is that our bioplastics are perfectly renewable, as they are not manufactured from fossil sources or biomass, but directly from CO2.
What are the challenges involved in producing bioplastics from microalgae?
M.G.: Microalgae have the advantage of not competing with agriculture for arable land, unlike bioplastics produced from corn, potatoes or sugar cane. Algae can be grown in photobioreactors - a system that produces photosynthetic microorganisms suspended in water - without the need for specific land.
What's more, unlike traditional bioplastics, produced by bacteria from biomass, our algae use CO2 and solar energy, considerably reducing the carbon footprint of production.
How can your project contribute to ocean preservation?
M.G.: Biodegradable plastics reduce the risk of long-term pollution. Even if they do end up in the environment, they degrade faster and more ecologically than conventional plastics.
How long have you been working on this project, and what are your prospects for the future?
M.G.: I'm in the second year of my thesis, and we're aiming for 2030 for the use of these new packaging materials. We're continuing to develop the project with Pierre Fabre and plan to collaborate with other manufacturers to increase production and, eventually, create prototypes of bioplastic packaging. Industrialization isn't just around the corner, but we're making progress!