NationStates Jolt Archive


The Free Republic Bans Petroleum Based Plastics

Ilek-Vaad
20-01-2005, 23:15
LNS, Coventry, Ilek-Vaad

'Green' Plastics to Replace Petroleum Based Plastics

Years of reasearch have finally made plastics made with petroleum obsolete. The labs at King's Park University in Coventry have devised a way to manufacture plastics using reclaimed CO2 and oil extracted from orange peels and a catalyst. In 2005 this method was discovered in laboratries at Cornell University but the technology was not there to be able to mass produce plastics in the quantity and of the quality of petroleum based plastics.

The Republican Council voted unanimously to pass a law phasing out petroleum plastic production in favour of 'green' plastic production. The Minister for the Interior explained-

"There are no sources of oil in the Free Republic, all petroleum based products are invariably imported from outside the country either as the raw petroleum or in the finished polymer. With ethanol and bio diesel as well as fusion power the only place that petroleum was still needed was in the manufacture of plastics, that need is now gone.

By this time next year, the Free Republic will have no use for petroleum or oil."

The news was hailed by enviromental groups since use of reclaimed CO2 in the process would drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the Free Republic. The petroleum lobby, was not pleased to say the least.

OOC: based on the article here: Orange Plastic! (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4191737.stm)
Ma-tek
21-02-2005, 01:11
"Wouldn't it have been easier just to use silicates?"

~ Imperial Plasticworkers Guild
Ilek-Vaad
21-02-2005, 18:54
OOC: because you're a big stupid doo-doo head? :D

IC:

We were not aware of a process that could use silica as a base for plastics and rubbers.

Minister of Foreign Trade, Ilek-Vaad
Ma-tek
21-02-2005, 19:48
"Ah, well. Ignorance is not a crime."

~ Imperial Plasticworkers Guild
Alcona and Hubris
21-02-2005, 22:17
[Engineering Analysis]Hmm, sounds like an oftly energy consumptive process. Of course one can replace some oil based plastics with those from corn oil if I recall correctly.[/Engneering Analysis]

edit: I won't quip about the problems with the comercialization of this process...or the article Ilek-Vaad likely based it on. It is only a game after all but the process may have some serious defects in producing a structural plastic RL.