Design Student Invents Genius Biodegradable Alternative to Plastic Water Bottles

March 23, 2016

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“…the average time for a plastic bottle to completely degrade is at least 450 years. It can even take some bottles 1000 years to biodegrade! That’s a long time for even the smallest bottle. 90% of bottles aren’t even recycled.

“…about 1.5 million barrels of oil are used every year to make the bottles, and even more oil is burned transporting them. Most of the time, the water inside the bottles has more contaminants than regular old tap water, meaning you could be drinking some serious problems.”

Knowing these facts, product design student Ari Jónsson decided to find a solution to this problem. By combining red algae powder with water, he created a biodegradable bottle.

“I read that 50 per cent of plastic is used once and then thrown away so I feel there is an urgent need to find ways to replace some of the unreal amount of plastic we make, use and throw away each day,” Jónsson told Dezeen. “Why are we using materials that take hundreds of years to break down in nature to drink from once and then throw away?”

The bottle will keep it’s shape as long as it’s full of water. However, once it’s emptied, it will begin to decompose.

It’s made completely from natural materials and the water stored inside is safe to drink.

Jónsson currently studies at the Iceland Academy of Arts and exhibited the project at a design festival DesignMarch earlier this month.

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