Replacing Plastic with Bamboo: Eco-Friendly Disposable Tableware Based on the Separation of Bamboo Fibers and the Reconstruction of Their Network Structure

Abstract

Disposable bamboo fiber tableware is a novel type of product that utilizes sustainable, high-performance bamboo fiber to minimize plastic pollution. In this study, we developed a high-utility bamboo fiber tableware product by employing a novel hybrid fiber-membrane strategy: We used a combination of steam explosion technology and mechanical refining to achieve the “up-down” separation of bamboo. During the molding process, slender bamboo fibers mixed with starch were interwoven into a strong three-dimensional network structure, which resulted in the abundant formation of physical interwinding, fiber bridging, and hydrogen bonding. The above structural features conferred excellent strength, water resistance, oil resistance, better high- and low-temperature resistance, a low content of dissolved substances, and the capacity for rapid degradation when compared with plastic and polylactic acid tableware. We conducted a product life cycle evaluation and found that replacing 20% of plastic tableware products with the bamboo fiber tableware product developed herein would be equal to reducing carbon emissions equivalent to 300,000 cars in a small city.