Why Algae Could be the Plastic of the Future #TeamSeas

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#TeamSeas

[samrooney]

You had fun writing this episode, there is a LANDFILL of puns in here!

[KyleWitten]

The one thought that I had that wasn't addressed was whether or not untreated sewage would be a suitable water/nutrient source. It seems to be a limitless waste product resource. And any thing left over could be returned to the sewer system from whence it came for further treatment prior to discharge. Free water/nutrients. Reduced treatment costs at the sewage plant. Sounds like a potential win/win/win for everyone.

[jeanrockprince]

True: “Algae have the potential to be the oil of the future”. Also true: Oil is the algae of the past.

[angrytigger]

I would of thought disposable packaging would be a better use if the material is bio-degradable. I've had the same flipflops for years but go though a bins worth of plastic packaging every week.

[Scoutth]

I feel this would be great for 3D printing filament for people that are prototyping before printing in a standard plastic. Would sure make me feel better about throwing away failed prints.

[OMGSAMCOPSEY]

Algae seems like a small part of a large solution. Through mixtures of fungus, bamboo and hemp with the proper agricultural growth I really think it could all make a huge dent in the worlds disposable plastic problem.

[ChrispyNut]

Algae and hemp are critical components to combine IMO for the future (along with much more glass use due to its high recyclability, strength, reusability and flexibility for shaping).

[karansainiscmhrd]

The puns were in full bloom this episode.

[ftby]

This is quickly becoming one of my favorite channels on YouTube! I watch it with my kids and we love it!

[Nighthawkinlight]

Where did the 5g of micro plastics consumed per week figure come from? That's a shocking number. Several heaping spoonfuls of dryer lint every week. From what source is the bulk of that mass being consumed?

[prxZen]

My first question is: How exactly is it composted to achieve full biodegredation in 6 months? We don't need another polylactic acid'esque plastic (PLA), that's only compostable in the hottest industrial composting facilities out there. We also don't need partial mix products, because the non-biodegradeable 50% of a product in the rivers, oceans and landfills, still cause much the same harm as 100%. If we're gonna mix, then it has to be done with products that are incredibly simple and easy for consumers to "disassemble" and separate correctly before throwing away, and educate the masses in doing so.

Blended plastics might have its usefulness as a driver for development towards completely biodegradeable. But it's incredibly important that it gets treated as non biodegradable until then. A partially biodegraded plastic body in nature, especially a mixed blend so you're basically left with a sponge-like mass of non-biodegradeable plastic - is gonna further deteriorate into microplastics MUCH faster than an intact 100% non biodegradable one.

[showme]

This is the best news of the year, I for one will be investigating an Algae plant myself as a business proposition!

[romant]

I wonder how do these 6-months-till-degraded shoes survive in damp and warm environment with lots of bacteria. Like being worn on human feet for example. This algae foam is cool and it sure has it's uses but getting rid of packaging seems like a better way to help the ecology. I buy new shoes maybe every eight months or so but I have to eat every single day.

[iancormie]

One big question for this material and for synthetic leathers is how well do they stand up to constant use? - The world is full of faux leathers that fall apart after two days of use.

[TrogdorBurninor]

Is the algae actually contributing anything in bloom foam? You can make concrete or asphalt macadam out of practically any filler as long as you include the key binder.

[ssatva]

Mostly just commenting to help boost because I like the work you're doing so much!
I will note that at least for me, a more specific breakdown of what's in these foams other than algae would've been a worthwhile thing to add--there are so many things that aren't nearly as good as they look or try to look, that suspicion is an unfortunately wise default.
But having a place where I get to learn about these things is priceless, just as it is now--so thank you.

[_potatomeister]

While it's a good step towards the right direction, the composition of algae plastic to tradition plastic in Bloom foam is still pretty low. In a Business Insider video with Bloom cofounder Ryan Hunt, he mentioned that algae pellets only made up anywhere from 10 to 30% of the final foam material. What I'm really curious about is how algae plastic will perform beyond foam like materials and I'm really excited to see the industry, well... bloom.

Edit: I also wonder how other plastic alternatives fare against algae based plastic. Seaweed and hemp are two other alternatives I've heard of

[tgh]

It is hard to believe that shoe production produces 450 billion lbs of CO2 each year. Thats more than 50 lbs per person on earth. Somebody is buying lots of shoes...

[thecaptain]

I saw your videos on net zero housing and thought they were cool which made me think you should do a video on Monolithic dome homes. They are homes that are basically made from shotcrete (air pressurized concrete shot at a wall to make it a more compacted form of concrete there for stronger than regularly poured). In terms of heating costs the entire thing is basically a giant thermal battery and since its made of of shotcrete it is virtually airtight except for doors. Also yes it does require a lot of concrete which isn't very carbon neutral however to be fair if you build one of those homes they will absolutely outlast you and probably your grandkids so you wouldn't be required to say get a new roof if a tree fell on it since these things could probably take a bomb to it and still be structurally safe. Another thing to note is those homes are rated by FEMA as shelters for disasters which brings me to another point that back in the mid 2000's there was a guy in Florida who actually stayed inside his monolithic home DURING A HURICANE and survived with a news crew who stayed with him (its a wild story I'm sure you can find) and the house survived completely intact. I find it especially interesting since after all the damage from the recent hurricane you would think people would stop building houses that can just be absolutely destroyed every certain amount of years when a big hurricane comes by and we all know another is coming whether sooner or later. Don't get me wrong there are plenty of challenges and issues with these houses like the other ones you looked at such as low resale value since there is not really a market for these homes and some communities might not let you build them altogether because a big concrete dome is not really an appealing look (but there are some people who do just cover them in dirt and turn them into a hobbit house so lets all be honest and just admit having a hobbit house would be awesome) among other issues too. You should definitely make a video about them I think it would be a cool video for you to do.

[tskillz]

It just keeps getting better as you talk like please People let’s promote this it’s genius!!